Escape from the Darkness
by Electryone
Summary: [COMPLETE] Inspired by Jane Eyre. Hermione gets a tutoring job over the summer. Unfortunately, her pupil is Snape's niece.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: The idea for this fic came from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte; however that's the only thing that comes from that book-you don't need to have read Jane Eyre to read this story, and there are no spoilers for that book. But, there may be minor Order of the Phoenix spoilers in this story. 

Also, please let me know what you think. Both positive and negative reviews are welcome!  

Disclaimer:  I am not J.K. Rowling and I do not own the Harry Potter series. I wish I did, though. ^_^

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 1**

Severus strode down the corridor, his black robes swishing around him. Several students shrank back against the walls in fear of getting into his way. He had dismissed his class, the third year Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, immediately upon receiving the headmaster's note. He gave the password, then waited impatiently for the gargoyle to move so that he could ascend the stairs.

"Albus, what have you heard?" he asked frantically. His worries diminished when he saw a smile form on the headmaster's face.

"She has woken up," Albus Dumbledore said happily. "The doctor who owled me said that there would be no permanent damage."

Sighing with relief, Severus sank down into an armchair. The past few months for him had consisted of nothing but waiting. However, all of that ended today. She was awake…and she would live. 

Selene Snape was now his only living relative. True, he hadn't exactly been close to her father, his older brother, but the attack on their family that had taken place four months earlier had still been shocking to him. She and her parents had been subjected to the Cruciatus curse. Severus wasn't sure why they had been singled out, but he knew that his brother had been a long time supporter of the Dark Lord. Recently, Voldemort had ordered the Death Eaters to torture those who had betrayed him. 

Severus knew that his own loyalty might be questioned at any time. He could be dead tomorrow for all he knew. However, he had been excellent at concealing the truth from the Dark Lord for years. He only hoped that his identity as a spy for the Order of the Phoenix would remain hidden.

Focusing his eyes on the headmaster, he asked the question that he had been dreading, one that he in fact already knew the answer to. "Albus, what will happen to her now?"

"Well, Severus, as the girl's only living relative, you are now in charge of her upbringing until she becomes an adult." Albus paused briefly. "I'm assuming you plan to continue her education here at Hogwarts, since she was only at Beauxbatons for three months before she was attacked." Severus nodded. 

"However, there is one matter that we must attend to," the headmaster continued. "She has missed the last few months of her first year and therefore needs somebody to help her catch up so that she may begin her second year with the same skills as the rest of her class."

"Albus, you know I have no time for that. The summer is the only part of the year I have off, and I have several vital potions that I must work on," Severus said with irritation dripping from his voice. "Let the little girl start as a first year."

"No, Severus, you misunderstand me." A twinkle formed in his eye. "I was planning on having one of the older students tutor her, perhaps Miss Hermione Granger?"

"Granger?" Severus scowled. "She's bossy and she thinks she knows everything. I hardly think that she would have the patience for this. Aren't there any others, maybe one of the Slytherins? Or at least a Ravenclaw?"

"No, Severus. Miss Granger is our new Head Girl, and is one of the brightest witches to grace Hogwarts in years. She would be perfect."

Severus made a noise between a snort and a growl. Did Albus actually think Selene, a Snape, would get along with a Gryffindor? Especially her? The girl was absolutely exasperating. Not only was she a know-it-all, but she was also best friends with Potter and Weasley, two of the biggest troublemakers in their year. 

_Oh well, she probably won't even last a week. Then Albus will be forced to admit that he was wrong._ Severus cared for Albus like a father, but he hated it when the old man was right about something he disagreed with. 

"Very well, Albus." 

"Excellent, Severus. I'll start making arrangements immediately." The headmaster seemed cheerful that Severus had accepted his idea, although halfheartedly. Severus left the office with a sneer on his face. 

*******************

Hermione Granger stared at the lake, watching it glisten in the sun. The day before, it had been filled with students swimming, all of whom had left on Hogwarts Express this morning. Hermione had hugged Ron, Harry, and Ginny, promising to owl them often over the summer. None of them could believe she was actually going to be tutoring Snape's niece. She could barely believe it herself. But Headmaster Dumbledore had been quite persistent. _And it's not like I have anywhere else to go._

The attacks by Voldemort's followers had increased greatly over the past year, especially on Muggleborn witches and wizards, and their families. Also, many Death Eaters had escaped from Azkaban. As a result, Dumbledore had recommended that all Muggleborns stay with other wizarding families or at Hogwarts for their own safety, and that of their families. Many of the staff members were also staying for the summer.

Hermione had originally been planning to spend the summer with the Weasleys, but wasn't looking forward to it. She missed her parents desperately and thought that being with Ron and his parents the whole summer would only cause her to become more depressed. And she loved Hogwarts; it was practically her home. Because of all this, she had accepted the offer that Dumbledore had given her two months earlier.

If only she didn't have to see Snape! Not that she hated the man, or even disliked him. Ever since she found out about his work with the Order, she had respected him greatly. Many lives had been saved because of him, and acting as a spy against Voldemort was an enormous sacrifice on his part. But despite all that, he was still the greasy Potions Master who had done everything in his power to make the last six years difficult for Hermione and her friends.

Hermione looked at her watch realizing that Selene Snape would be arriving any minute. More than anything, she hoped the girl wasn't like her uncle. _I suppose I'll soon find out_, Hermione thought, as she began walking in the direction of the castle.

*******************

Selene Snape had a sullen expression on her face as she stepped out of the carriage. She had stringy black hair, dark eyes, and dull pale skin. She looked sickly, which Hermione reasoned was probably from being in St. Mungo's since January. Hermione stood back as Professors Snape, Dumbledore, and McGonagall greeted Selene. 

"Miss Snape, I'd like to introduce you to Miss Granger," Dumbledore said.

"Please, call me Hermione," she said with a smile, hoping the dour expression would disappear. She was not disappointed.

"It's nice to meet you," Selene said quietly. Hermione was relieved to see a sincere smile, rather than the smirks she always saw on Snape's face. Hermione chatted with her as they followed the three professors to the Great Hall. She found out that Selene was eleven, but would be twelve in two weeks, had grown up in Normandy, and had been sent to Beauxbatons for schooling. The girl seemed exceedingly shy, only speaking when spoken to. 

Hermione could only hope that she was a good student, who would be willing to learn. For several years, Hermione had been interested in becoming a teacher, and she had hoped that this experience would help her figure out if she would be able to do it. She had been tutoring Gryffindors during her entire time at Hogwarts, but had no experience with students from Slytherin. And there was no doubt in her mind that Selene would be sorted into Slytherin. She fit the profile perfectly—a pureblood witch from a family with a history of service to Voldemort. However, at the moment she certainly didn't _seem like a Slytherin, but who knew what would happen when the school term began and she was surrounded by others in her house?_

_Don't be stupid_, Hermione thought to herself. _I should know better than anyone not to judge somebody by their background. _She was constantly belittled by Draco Malfoy and his cronies for being Muggleborn. However, her test scores were much better than any of theirs, and she had received the highest number of O.W.L.s in their year. 

They reached the Great Hall, which had been completely cleared out except for one table in the center of the room. The tapestries from all four houses still hung from the ceiling, and there were pictures on the walls, but Hermione was surprised by how empty it seemed. _Probably because I know that there are very few other students here. A small lump formed in her throat as she realized that this would be the first time she was at Hogwarts without Harry and Ron. She hoped that teaching Selene Snape, in addition to having access to all of the books in the library, would keep her from feeling too lonely and depressed. _

They sat at the table and were soon joined by several other professors and students that were staying at Hogwarts over the summer. To Hermione's relief, Professor Trelawney was not there. Out of all the teachers at Hogwarts, Sibyll Trelawney was the only one (aside from a few of the Defense Against the Dark Arts professors she'd had) that she truly had no respect for. She looked at the professors surrounding her, all of them talking happily about their lives. 

Well, almost all of them. Professor Snape was eating quietly, ignoring all attempts at conversation by the other staff members. Only when his eyes met hers did Hermione realize she had been staring at him. She looked down at her plate, feeling her cheeks grow slightly pink. 

Ignoring her reaction to Snape, Hermione turned to Selene and began asking her about her favorite subjects, and her study habits. Hermione knew that it was probably boring for the other girl to talk about, but she wanted to know anything that could possibly help her to teach her pupil. 

She did not notice that Severus Snape's eyes were on her the entire time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 2**

As he walked to his private quarters, Severus frowned. He had been hoping that Selene would hate Hermione Granger immediately, but the two of them had been talking like old friends. _Why do I care so much about this? Surely my life would only be more difficult without the Granger girl to keep Selene out of my hair. _

However, Severus immediately knew the answer to this. It was the same reason he always examined her potions more closely than the other students, trying to find a flaw in hers. It wasn't just that he enjoyed challenging one of Hogwarts' brightest minds. He _wanted_ Hermione Granger to fail at something. And he still had yet to see it happen. She was absolutely perfect—which she knew—and it irritated him to no end. 

It had all started in her first year, when she had entered the Chamber of the Sorcerer's Stone with Potter and Weasley. He had made his potions riddle difficult enough so that it was nearly impossible for even the most well-trained wizard or witch to pass. Never in his wildest nightmares would he have expected the puzzle to be solved by a first year Gryffindor. It had injured his pride, the feeling that he had been outsmarted by an eleven-year-old. 

Since then, he had watched Granger closely, always searching for—but never finding—some sort of fault relating to her mind, or her studies. Her test scores were extraordinary, her research was thorough, and the only subject she didn't excel at was Divination (which was, in Severus' opinion, a complete waste of time anyway). 

His musings were interrupted by knock. He was about to growl at the person who dared to disrupt him, when he remembered telling Selene to see him as soon as she finished eating. He sighed and went to answer the door. "Hello, Uncle Severus," she said with nervousness in her voice. 

"Good evening, Selene. Please come in." He gestured to an armchair, and sat in another one next to her, then offered her a cup of tea, which she accepted. 

Taking a deep breath, he began. "I realize that you have spent the past few months trying to forget what happened in January. Unfortunately, Headmaster Dumbledore has deemed it necessary for me to find out exactly what happened." She nodded, having known this was coming.

"I want you to look into my eyes and concentrate only on the events on the night of your parents' deaths." Selene obeyed, and Severus put his wand up to her temple, extracting a silver strand, which he placed in Dumbledore's Pensieve. After a quick glance at it, Severus nodded satisfactorily then spoke. "Thank you, that's all I need from you." 

He paused for a moment. "Selene, I can perform a memory charm that can cause you to forget the specific events of that night. You will know what happened, but will no longer be able to visualize or feel the pain that you and your parents experienced that night. Would you like me to do that?"   

"N…no, I don't want to lose any of my memories. It was the last time I ever saw my parents alive." Severus could see tears forming in the corners of her eyes. 

He looked at her in surprise, for he had expected her to say yes. Then he nodded. "Very well. Thank you," he said. He felt a strange feeling come over him as he looked at the girl in front of him. Compassion. He quickly gave her an awkward hug, then nodded dismissively. "Good night."

After she left, he looked down at the Pensieve tentatively, watching the silvery substance inside of it swirling around. He knew that he should tap it with his wand to place himself in the memory. However, he wasn't looking forward to watching his brother die. Severus spent a few more minutes staring, then, deciding that he could put it off no longer, picked up the Pensieve and took his wand out of his pocket. But, before he could do anything, he was interrupted by a knock on the door. _Damn! This had better be important._

He set the Pensieve down, and growled, "Come in," at the person behind the door. As Hermione Granger walked in, he regarded her with a look of annoyance. 

"Professor Snape," she said. "I hope I'm not disturbing you." 

She was but he chose to give her an irritated glare, rather than saying anything. Surprisingly, she didn't flinch under his gaze.  

"I was wondering if you can give me some supplies." She gave him a short list of ingredients, all of which were part of the Potions curriculum for first year students.  

Severus sneered at her, amazed that she had disrupted him for something so trivial. "Follow me, Miss Granger." He walked towards his supply closet, not bothering to see if she was behind him. He mumbled a few summoning charms to get the ingredients, then handed them to her.

"Thank you, Professor Snape," Granger told him.

He gave a slight nod, then spoke with displeasure in his voice. "Now if you'll leave me in peace, I have more important things to do than fulfilling the petty needs of students." She looked hurt for an instant, then immediately turned on her heel and left.

*******************

Hermione quickly walked towards her room as anger filled up inside of her. _Slimy git._ Why was Snape so rude to her? Every teacher she had ever had was kind to her because she was always the top student. Snape was the only one who treated her like she was an insignificant child. She always received the top marks in his classes and had not made even one mistake in the last six years of Potions. She had always strived to please him, to get him to respect her, but nothing worked. 

With a sigh, she arrived at her new room. It was right next to Selene's, which was across the hall from Snape's quarters. Hermione hated being stuck in the cold, dark dungeons. Especially since everything was decorated in silver and green, Slytherin colors. However, a smile formed on her face when she remembered a few charms she had learned. With a few flicks of her wand, the entire room was now red and gold. _Much better,_ she thought to herself. _There's one good thing about staying at Hogwarts for the summer holidays-I am allowed to use magic. It's also nice that I have access to the library._

Her spirits were once again uplifted when she thought of the library. She quickly changed into her nightgown, then grabbed a book she had checked out earlier that day. After several hours of reading, Hermione drifted off into a deep sleep.

The next day, Hermione and Selene began their lessons. Hermione was very relieved to find that Selene was relatively intelligent and willing to learn. By the end of the day, she had nearly mastered the levitation charm, Wingardium Leviosa, made an effective boil curing potion, and had began a History of Magic essay.   

The two girls quickly became friends, despite the five year age difference. This was probably because there were only about ten other students besides the two of them staying at Hogwarts over the summer. Hermione was relieved to find out that Selene was nothing like her uncle, and definitely not like most of the Slytherins she knew. _Maybe she'll be put in Gryffindor_. A mischievous grin lit up her face when she thought about how Snape would react if his only relative became a Gryffindor. She hoped it would cause him to be nicer to the non-Slytherin students in general.

That night, Hermione was reading in bed long after most of the castle inhabitants were asleep. Her eyelids began to grow heavy around midnight and she began dozing off. Suddenly she was awoken by a loud cry. _Selene!_ Hermione thought to herself alarmingly. She grabbed her wand, and ran down the hall, towards the younger girl's room. Selene was lying in bed with tears streaming down her face. 

Selene spoke in a soft, scared voice. "S…sorry, Hermione. I...I had a nightmare. About my parents…" She broke off and began sobbing noisily. Hermione put her arms around Selene and stroked her hair, hoping to somehow comfort her. When she finally stopped crying, Selene looked at Hermione with fear in her eyes. "Please, don't leave me alone," she pleaded. Hermione nodded, and stayed in the room until she was certain that Selene was fast asleep.

As Hermione softly closed the door behind her, she wondered what it must have felt like for Selene to watch her parents die. She made a mental note to write a letter to her own parents in the morning. She missed them so much, and was terrified that something might happen to them because of Voldemort's rise.         

"Miss Granger." A voice and a hand on her shoulder caused Hermione to jump and gasp, bringing her out of her reverie. In the dim lighting of the dungeons, she looked up into the black eyes of the man before her.

"P...Professor Snape, you startled me!" Suddenly she realized that she was out after the Hogwarts curfew, which would probably give him even more reason to be angry with her. "I'm sorry that I'm out of my room this late, but Selene—"

"Thank you, Miss Granger." 

Hermione was confused. Had he just thanked her? She looked up at him, expecting to see a sarcastic sneer, but her gaze was met with one of sincerity, an expression she had never before seen on his face. _He must have been standing outside the door the entire time, she thought to herself. _

Hermione felt her pulse rate quicken as she realized that his hand was still on her shoulder. Apparently Snape noticed too, because he snatched his arm away swiftly, as if he had been burned. Hermione trembled at the sudden loss of warmth. She looked down at her thin nightgown, and felt her face beginning to turn red. 

"Miss Granger, you're shivering. I suggest you go back to your room," he said to her in a silky voice.

Hermione complied wordlessly, her heart still pounding. She collapsed into bed, and sunk into a restless sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 3**

The next few weeks were, to Hermione's relief, uneventful. Selene had progressed quickly in her studies, and would most likely be caught up within the next month, before the end of the summer. She had also not had anymore nightmares. Hermione suspected that Snape had been giving her dreamless sleep potion, because Selene seemed refreshed every morning.

Although she still couldn't stand Snape, Hermione had to admit that he was not completely heartless. He truly seemed to care about both his niece and his late brother. However, the biggest surprise came one Saturday morning after breakfast.

Selene was off somewhere with Dennis Creevey, who was the only other student younger than fifteen staying over the summer. The rest of the students had gone to Hogsmeade, so Hermione was free to indulge herself in reading without interruption. She was walking out of the Great Hall, preparing to spend the entire day in the library. As she stepped out of the door, she nearly ran into Snape.

"Professor Snape!" Hermione exclaimed. She felt her face flush with embarrassment at not paying attention to where she was walking. _At least it's the summer, so he's not allowed to take away house points, she thought._

"Miss Granger, I was wondering if I might have a word with you," he told her. Without waiting for her to answer, he continued. "Apparently it's not enough that Professor McGonagall gave you a permanent pass to the Restricted Section. Now the headmaster has requested that I allow you access to my personal library." A sour expression formed on his face while he spoke. "I suppose that out of all the students at Hogwarts, you are one of the most trustworthy when it comes to books. Nevertheless, I expect you to ask for my permission before taking any of them out of that room."

Even the obvious displeasure in Snape's demeanor could not stop the happiness that was flowing through Hermione. "Of course, Professor Snape! Thank you so much!" Her eyes lit up with delight when she recalled his library. She had only been inside a few times, but Hermione had managed to glimpse several books that she had been yearning to read, which could not be found in the Hogwarts library.

After Snape dismissed her, Hermione immediately walked in the direction of his library. She wondered how Dumbledore had convinced him to give her this privilege. She hoped that Snape was beginning to dislike her less now that she was helping Selene. It would certainly be nice, and it would sure make life a lot easier. Hermione hated the way the Potions professor constantly criticized all Gryffindor students, especially her. Although his disapproval sometimes prompted her to work even harder, it was discouraging to most of her friends, causing them to make mistakes in class. 

Hermione gave the password to the painting in front of the door, then walked into Snape's library. This was the first time she had ever been inside without Selene. Happy to be alone with all the volumes of Snape's collection, she gazed around the room in amazement, wondering where she should start. She finally settled on a version of Hogwarts: A History that had been published nearly fifty years earlier. She spent the next few hours poring over it, astounded by the amount of information that had been cut out of the most recent edition. She wondered where Snape had gotten such a rare book… and whether or not he actually read it.

About halfway through the day, Hermione looked at her watch in alarm, realizing that she had missed lunchtime because she had been so absorbed in her reading. She ended up going to the kitchen to make herself something. Well, at least that had been her plan. She was immediately accosted by house-elves who insisted that she let them do all the work. Remembering all of the clothes she had knitted for them in her fifth year and the attempts she had made in her second year, she frowned, realizing that most of her efforts had been fruitless. _How frustrating._

She wished she hadn't been reminded of the futility of her efforts with S.P.E.W. She hated the feeling that she had failed at something, especially since she had been working so hard to change things. 

Suddenly, a wave of sadness washed over her. It didn't help that she was practically alone at Hogwarts. It was strange to be there without Harry and Ron. She was also depressed that she hadn't seen her parents in eight months. Hermione felt tears form in her eyes, but held them back, deciding to go directly to her room to curl up with Crookshanks and write several letters to her parents and friends. Surprisingly, that had the affect she had been hoping for. After she arrived back from sending her letters at the owlery, her melancholy had nearly vanished. Hermione decided to go back to Snape's library.

*****************

Severus walked away from the Great Hall, feeling the beginnings of a headache which, most likely, came from the insipid chatter of his fellow professors during their meal. He had spent the entire day in his potions lab and couldn't wait to be alone in his study, with nothing but a warm fire and a good book. However, as he reached his library, he saw the one obstacle to his peaceful night. _Granger. _

He inwardly cursed Albus and Minerva for suggesting he give the girl the right to use his library. It was infuriating that Minerva was using him to help her pamper her favorite Gryffindor. _And it's not as if they don't indulge her enough already, Severus thought to himself with a sneer on his face. He was still unsure why he had actually agreed with them. Perhaps he had been experiencing a rare moment of weakness. Although, he had to admit that she was one of the few students who actually knew how to treat books properly. Most of the others saw the library as a cursed place, and visited it only when they had exams or projects. Severus shuddered as he imagined Potter, Weasley, or Longbottom having access to his collection. _No_, he thought, __it could have been much worse than her. He watched her for several moments, noticing how engrossed she seemed in whatever she was reading. Finally he spoke._

"Good evening, Miss Granger," he said to her brusquely. He was pleased to see her jump at the sound of his voice. 

"Professor Snape!" she gasped. "I'm sorry; I can leave if you'd like." Severus was about to tell her to do just that, when his eyes fell on the book she was reading. It was one of the most valuable in his collection, and also one of the most fascinating. It was the only edition of Hogwarts: A History in the school that told the events during Tom Riddle's time at Hogwarts exactly as they happened, without leaving out the more interesting information.

"I suppose that this is the reason you skipped two meals today. That book is an excellent choice, by the way," he told her, realizing too late that his voice contained a hint of approval in it. Severus scowled to himself as he grabbed a book and sank down in an armchair.

"I agree," she said with a smile. "I've been reading it the entire day." 

For several minutes, Severus was absorbed in his reading. Until he became conscious of a pair of eyes watching him.

"Miss Granger," he said dryly, without looking up, "do you plan on staring at me for the rest of the night? It's very distracting." 

He heard a sharp intake of breath, which confirmed that she indeed had been looking at him. A smirk formed on his face. He turned to look at a mortified Hermione Granger. She was apparently at a loss for words—probably for the first time in her life—which only encouraged him to embarrass her more. 

"Tell me, Miss Granger, have you been gazing at me this entire time because you find me attractive?" 

"Absolutely not!" she snapped back at him quickly. Her face suddenly became pale, most likely at the realization that she had just insulted a teacher. "I-I'm sorry, sir. I didn't mean that! What I meant was—" 

Severus interrupted her with a laugh, one of the few sincere ones he had ever let any of his students hear. "I know what you meant, Miss Granger. You're no beauty either, so I won't hold it against you." 

He took pleasure the blush that crept onto her cheeks. She seemed uncertain as to how she should respond, and finally took that opportunity to bury her face in her book again. 

Severus sneered, pleased that he had caused the Gryffindor know-it-all to become speechless. He turned back to his own book, but was unable to concentrate. For some reason, his eyes kept drifting to the girl sitting near him. She seemed completely captivated by her book. Severus briefly considered asking which passage she was reading, but decided against that. _I am actually considering making friendly conversation with Granger_, he thought incredulously. _What is wrong with me?_ A strange feeling came over him. Was it possible that he enjoyed having her in the same room with him? She was certainly more interesting and intelligent than the rest of the students at Hogwarts, and much of the staff. However, she was still Hermione Granger, the nauseatingly perfect Gryffindor, and one of the most annoying students he would probably ever teach. 

With an exasperated sigh, Severus gave up on his book. "Good night, Miss Granger. Put that book away when you finish," he said abruptly. In a flurry of black robes, he swept out of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 4**

To Severus' relief, he barely saw Hermione Granger at all over the next few days. However, he found his mind drifting to her often, nearly every time he took a break from potion-brewing. Because of this, he attempted to stay as busy as possible.  His feelings about her ranged from irritation at her bossiness to appreciation for her mind, which obviously surpassed all of the other students'. Not that he would ever tell her that he considered her to be the most intelligent student in the school. He didn't even want to admit his thoughts to himself. He was beginning to admire the qualities in her that had previously caused him annoyance and displeasure. And he absolutely loathed that.

He had been content with his feelings about her in the past. It was easier for him to deal with a know-it-all Gryffindor brat who had nothing other than her high marks in school. But in the past month, he had understood that she was much deeper than that. He had seen the way she acted with Selene, and knew that she would be the type of teacher that all students would like. The complete opposite of him.

Not that he wanted to be that way. He never had, and that probably would never change. The thing he was beginning to hate most about Hermione Granger was the effect she had on him. Although he had many conflicting feelings about her, she was the only person he had ever met who shared so many of his character traits, but was so different from him at the same time. Their personalities complemented each other well, so much that he actually _enjoyed_ being near her. And that worried him more than anything. 

Severus' musings were interrupted with a searing pain. He cursed inwardly when he looked at the Dark Mark on his arm. As extraordinary as it seemed, he had actually forgotten it was there for a brief period. But, there was no escaping it—the Mark would be there always and would continue burning as long as Voldemort was alive. 

He quickly grabbed his Death Eater garb and rushed out of Hogwarts. A sickening feeling began forming in the pit of his stomach as he wondered what Voldemort wanted now. Severus thought of Selene's memories in the Penseive. She had been tortured and had watched her parents die by the hands of several Death Eaters, who he had recognized as Malfoy, LeStrange, and a few others. Severus had been present on many similar occasions, and had even done the Cruciatus curse before. Luckily, he had never been the one to perform the Avada Kedavra curse. A man of his skills had other purposes. He had always been the one to prepare the potions to give the Dark Lord strength or to torment others. Although Severus had never directly taken a life, it had been he who gave Voldemort so much power. Because of that, every single murder by Voldemort's followers was on his conscience. 

He agonized about this everyday, constantly wishing that his blindness in his youth hadn't caused him to turn to Dark Arts. While he had been at Hogwarts, the possibility of a life full of power and acceptance had tempted him, too much. By the time he realized what he had become, it was too late to go back. He had the choice of staying a Death Eater or being killed. His desperation had led him to Dumbledore. Throughout all the years since then, the only thing that kept him from taking his own life was his need to atone for all the horrific things that he could have prevented.

Severus took a deep breath as he reached the gates of Hogwarts. He was almost certain that Voldemort was suspicious of him, which concerned him. And everyone who betrayed Voldemort had been tortured, murdered, or both. He took one last glimpse of the castle, knowing that there was a good chance he would never see it again.

*****************

"Good evening, Severus," Voldemort said to him in a throaty voice. Severus felt a chill running down his spine, which he ignored. It was vital for him to remain stoic whenever he was near the Dark Lord. Showing his true feelings could cause his death.

"Good evening, my lord," Severus responded, bowing slightly. He hoped that he hadn't been summoned for an attack. The killings had been becoming more frequent…and also more brutal. He stepped back and looked around the room, noting that there were very few other Death Eaters present. No, they were definitely not going to be attacking anybody tonight. He felt momentarily relieved.

"Severus, I am very disappointed in you," Voldemort began, as Severus' relief quickly turned to panic. _He's found out that I'm a spy. I'm going to die tonight._ For some reason, the thought didn't scare him as much as he would have imagined. Probably because he had been expecting to be killed for many years, knowing that it was inevitable. He didn't respond.

Lord Voldemort continued angrily. "Although several traitors were killed in January, their daughter survived. Recently, I found out that she is being raised by none other than one of my most loyal supporters, _you." He paused for a moment, glaring at Severus. "Imagine my surprise at being betrayed by one of my most devoted followers. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"_

Stunned, Severus hesitated for the briefest second, which was enough for the Dark Lord.

_"Crucio!"_

Severus clenched his teeth as pain shot through his body, hoping for it to stop soon. This wasn't the first time that he had been the recipient of the Cruciatus Curse, but it was still shocking. Part of him wished that Voldemort had just used the Killing Curse immediately. Cruciatus was the worst pain imaginable, and was difficult to recover from. After what seemed like an eternity, Voldemort released him. Severus let out a deep breath.

"Well, Severus?" he questioned.

"My lord," Severus gasped. "It was necessary. Unfortunately, I am the girl's legal guardian, and it would be too suspicious if I didn't take responsibility for her. Dumbledore already believes something is amiss." He paused for a second, hoping that his reference to Albus would be a sufficient explanation. Dumbledore was, after all, the only person that Lord Voldemort was afraid of. Severus continued. "Despite the fact that her parents were traitors, the girl has a lot of internal anger, and shows promise in the Dark Arts. It would be a waste if she were killed. Nobody would suspect her of being a Death Eater, and she will be a valuable asset to you once she comes of age." He held his breath, waiting to see how the Dark Lord would respond to his lies.

Much to Severus' relief, Voldemort dismissed him, with no further talk of betrayal. However, Severus knew that Voldemort's distrust for him was growing. And that meant that it was only a matter of time before the Dark Lord found out about his work with the Order of the Phoenix, which would result in death.

*****************

Hermione looked at her wristwatch for the third time in the past ten minutes. Where was he? she wondered. Earlier that evening, she had been up in the Astronomy Tower with Selene, showing her the constellations. She had seen Snape leave the grounds, which had immediately caused a feeling of dread inside of her. She just _knew_ that something bad was going to happen. Hermione had kept her thoughts to herself, grateful that Selene loved Astronomy so much that she hadn't paid attention to anything aside from the night sky. 

All of her instincts told Hermione that Professor Snape was going to see Voldemort. She knew it was stupid, for he could have been going anywhere, but she couldn't shake the thought that something was wrong. Immediately after their astronomy lesson was over, she had gone to Snape's library, anxiously waiting for him to come back. _Should I go to Dumbledore? she had asked herself. Eventually, she had decided not to bother him with her suspicions. _

Hermione tried to read the book she had chosen. She hadn't gotten past the first page even though she had been there for an hour. With a sigh, she set the book on the table, and sat back against the chair. 

Suddenly, she heard the noise of the door, and Snape stumbled into the room. 

"Professor Snape!" she cried. He was shaking, and could barely stand. Putting her arm around him, Hermione helped him to the sofa. She could see surprise on his face when he saw her. 

"Miss Granger. Get Dumbledore now," he said to her, barely able to speak. She nodded, and then quickly flooed Dumbledore's Office, telling him that Professor Snape needed him. 

"What happened?" Hermione asked him.

"Miss Granger, please go away." 

"I'm not leaving you here!" Hermione responded. She stared at him for a few seconds, trying to figure out what had happened. Suddenly it dawned on her. _Cruciatus_. She could tell by the way he was shaking, since there didn't seem to be any blood or visible marks. She gulped as she thought of all the people she knew who had been victims of Cruciatus. Harry, Selene, the Longbottoms. And now, Professor Snape. 

He growled at her. "Since you insist on staying, get the purple bottle in my private supplies cupboard." He grabbed a key out of his pocket, and thrust it at her. "I trust you know where it is," he said with a sneer. 

As she rushed down the hall, Hermione felt herself blushing at the reference to the last time she had stolen potion ingredients. She had been caught by him five months earlier, when she was brewing a potion for Harry, and had spent a week in detention. Luckily, she had managed to get the ingredients she needed before he had found out about her using his supply cabinet. At that time, she had enjoyed looking through his potions and ingredients. But now, she felt anything but enjoyment.

She opened the door, and her eyes almost immediately fell on a violet bottle. She had seen it before and had wondered what it was. Now she knew… Hermione had read about mixtures that were used to alleviate the effects of the Cruciatus Curse, but knew that these potions were very rare because the ingredients were hard to find, and brewing the potion itself took a lot of time and patience. 

When Hermione returned to Snape's quarters, she found him struggling to undo his robes, his hands trembling uncontrollably. She remembered reading that the Anti-Cruciatus Potion was absorbed through the skin, which explained what he was doing. 

"Let me help," she said softly, trying to disregard the embarrassment she felt as she began to unbutton the top of his robes.

He pushed her hands away. "Thank you, Miss Granger, but I think I can undress myself," he said sarcastically. But his attempts were futile, as he couldn't even grasp his robes with his quivering fingers. 

Hermione smirked at him. Without saying anything, she began to help him once again. Snape gave her a childish scowl, which would have made her laugh under any other circumstances. 

Once he was unclothed from the waist up, she grabbed the bottle and opened it. The potion was gelatinous, rather than liquid like most of the potions she had encountered. Ignoring his assertions that he didn't want her assistance, Hermione began rubbing the salve onto him with gentle hands. His skin burned under her fingers. She saw him close his eyes when she touched him. She hoped it felt soothing, and caused the pain to decrease somewhat.

Hermione struggled not to flinch when she glimpsed the Dark Mark on his forearm. _He _has_ helped all of us tremendously because it, after all, she thought. Still, it was the first time she had ever seen it up close, which was fairly unsettling to her._

"Severus!" Headmaster Dumbledore entered the room. He looked at Hermione, and a small smile formed on his face, although the usual gleam in his eyes was gone. "Thank you for all of your help, Miss Granger. It is very much appreciated." Not surprisingly, Snape said nothing.  Dumbledore continued, "Now if you'll excuse us, I need to speak with Professor Snape." 

She nodded as she gave the ointment to Dumbledore, then left the room. Hermione hesitated momentarily outside of the door, longing to listen to their conversation, to find out what had happened. She finally decided not to, and went back to her own room. She spent several hours contemplating her Potions Professor before she fell asleep.  


	5. Chapter 5

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 5**

Hermione stretched languidly as she woke up the next morning. She had slept terribly, and late into the morning. She sat up when a realization hit her. It was August 22nd! Not that there was anything significant about the date, but it was the day that Harry and Ron were coming! She looked at her clock, noticing that it was 11:30, meaning that she only had a half hour before they got here. Hermione got ready quickly, but with a cheerfulness that she hadn't felt since the last term had ended. It had been two months since she had seen them, and she certainly missed them a lot. 

They had gotten permission from Headmaster Dumbledore to come about a week early to see her before classes began. When Harry had written a letter to her mentioning this, she had been delighted. It had been upsetting for her not to see them for the entire summer—the last one before she finished her schooling at Hogwarts. Hermione sighed sadly, thinking of the times before the killings of Muggleborn wizards had gotten so bad. She had actually been able to go home, and had even gone abroad with her parents many times. But now her family would be in danger if she left Hogwarts to see them. And the thought of that scared her more than anything. 

Hermione hurried down to the Great Hall, right as her friends were arriving. "Harry, Ron!" she cried with joy. She hugged and kissed them both on the cheek, a gesture which she immediately regretted when she saw Ron blushing. Recently, she had been suspecting that Ron regarded her as more than a friend. Unfortunately for him, she didn't feel the same way. 

However, Hermione brushed her worries on that matter aside, not wishing to spoil her pleasure at seeing her two best friends again. As they walked towards the table, the three of them began talking about everything that had happened since they had last seen each other. Now that Harry and Ron were both adults in the wizarding world, they could apparate, which caused a small amount of jealousy in Hermione. Her seventeenth birthday wasn't for another month, so she wouldn't be able to get her license until then. Despite the fact that all of the time-turner use from her third year had aged her several months, Professor McGonagall had advised her to wait until after her actual birthday to test for the apparition license. 

When the three of them sat down, Hermione realized that Snape's eyes were on her. He looked a little paler than usual, but normal other than that. She had truly not expected him to leave his suite at all today, but was both relieved and pleased that he was all right. Her gaze met his, and a small smile crept onto her face. His expression didn't change—it was still the same scowl that she was accustomed to seeing.

Ron interrupted her thoughts. "Hermione, are you listening to me?" She nodded and turned her head back to him. "As I was saying, Harry and I came up with a new Quidditch strategy and…" 

Hermione tried to pay attention, but could feel her concentration wavering. Professor Snape was _still watching her. She attempted to ignore the discomfort she felt from this, but was unsuccessful. She just wanted to leave the Great Hall. _

"Harry! And Ron, too!" Hermione looked up to see an excited Colin Creevey, followed by his brother, Dennis, and Selene. The three had been spending every spare moment together. Selene loved astronomy, and Colin and Dennis had been teaching her all about astrophotography, taking pictures of the night sky. Hermione was slightly glad for this, because Selene had been following her around everywhere in the beginning of the summer. It was the same way that Colin had been with Harry several years earlier, and was flattering, but also slightly annoying. The six of them talked until the end of the meal, and—despite the unnerving gaze of the Potions master—Hermione enjoyed it immensely. She was reassured by the fact that, despite all of the turmoil in the world, she still had her two best friends. 

"Wow, Snape's niece looks a lot like him," Harry said after he Ron, and Hermione left the Great Hall. 

"The poor girl," Ron said under his breath. 

"Ron!" Hermione elbowed him.

"Is she a Slytherin?" Harry asked. 

Hermione shook her head. "I'm not sure yet. She gets sorted with the first year students at the Start-of-Term Feast." Her eyes twinkled mischievously. "I think that she would make a great Gryffindor, though, don't you?"

Ron just rolled his eyes. "She's related to Snape. Of course she's going to be in Slytherin!"

The conversation then turned to Quidditch, and Hermione found herself tuning Ron out once again. Instead, she was focused on Harry. He had seemed so happy a few minutes earlier, but now… 

Ron kept talking all the way to the Gryffindor common room. When they got there, Ron left to unpack, but Harry stayed behind. 

"Harry? What is it?" she asked quietly as she sat down next to him on the sofa. He didn't respond. Her eyes widened. "Is this about Ron?" 

Harry nodded. "I thought that I should tell you. I didn't want to say anything to Ron, but I've been having more of my dreams lately." He paused. "The dream is always the same, although sometimes it starts at different places. But the end never changes. The dream always ends with me standing over Ron's dead body." Harry swallowed and looked down. 

Putting her hand on his arm, Hermione said, "Oh, Harry. You know that those dreams aren't always true! Maybe they are just normal nightmares. Or maybe it's something Voldemort is doing." Hermione shuddered. Not from the name, for she had stopped being afraid of speaking it over the past year, but from the idea that he might be controlling Harry's dreams again. "But I don't think you should take them to be premonitions! Look what happened with…" She trailed off, even though they both knew that she was talking about Sirius. Tears formed in Hermione's eyes, which she tried to hold back. 

"I'm so worried that something will happen to Ron, or to you, and it will be my fault," Harry cried. "And those dreams with Ron…"

Harry stopped. They sat in silence for a long time. Finally, Hermione asked the thing that she had been suspecting for a long time.

"You're in love with Ron, aren't you?"

"Yes," Harry said in a low voice. "But he's been in love with you for years, Hermione. I don't have a chance."

Hermione was completely speechless.

***************

After he left the Great Hall, Severus walked back to his rooms in displeasure. _Wonderful_, he thought sarcastically. _Just what I need—Potter and Weasley, the two most revolting Gryffindors in the school. And of course, Granger was fawning over the two of them throughout the entire meal. It's sickening._ He frowned at that thought of her. His heart rate had sped up when she had smiled at him today at lunch. Severus made a mental note to check if heart palpitations were one of the after-effects of Cruciatus. That was certainly the only explanation.

He wondered if Granger expected him to be grateful that she had assisted him the night before. He wasn't. Well, at least not that he would admit. More than anything, he just wished that she would mind her own business. Severus hated that she had seen him in a weakened state, and hated it even more that she had probably saved him from suffering any permanent damage. He doubted that he would have been able to handle using the Floo Network within the castle to get Albus, and would definitely have not been able to walk all the way to the Headmaster's office. Yes, Hermione Granger had helped him a lot. 

When Severus arrived the night before, he had been surprised to find her there. He could only assume that she had been waiting for him to return. She had a book in front of her, but Severus truly doubted that someone of her intelligence was actually reading Gilderoy Lockhart's _Magical Me (in fact, he didn't even know how that book had ended up in his library, but decided to dispose of it immediately).The thought that she cared enough to wait up for him was somewhat comforting. Although he actually tried to encourage feelings of hatred and fear of him in most of the non-Slytherin students, for some strange reason he was glad that Hermione Granger didn't completely loathe him. _

As the summer had gone by, he had found himself disliking her less and less. He was beginning to see her as his intellectual equal. There were few people at Hogwarts that he felt that way about and she was the only one out of them who was a student. He no longer had any desire to belittle her, and knew that once the next term began, he would reserve his criticism for more deserving students, such as Longbottom, Weasley, and Potter. Severus suddenly found himself groaning at the thought of those three students. It was unpleasant to think of, and he had been attempting to block out thoughts of his three worst students during the summer. He had mostly succeeded until today. All three of them wanted to become Aurors, which meant they needed to take N.E.W.T. level Potions. The strangest thing was the fact that all three of them had gotten the O.W.L.s necessary to qualify for his advanced class. Severus found himself wishing that they were more like their friend, Miss Granger, who was studious and not prone to stupidity. The thought that he actually _wanted more students like Hermione Granger made him cringe. It was something that he never would've imagined desiring. _

Severus sighed. His thoughts were constantly on Granger, which was absolutely maddening. And he found himself beginning to hope to run into her in his library or in the hallways. Her presence was actually preferable to his customary solitude. The last time he had met another person that he had felt that way about was… well, it had never actually happened until now. He hadn't had any real friends throughout his entire life, with the exception of Albus Dumbledore. But even the old man was too much sometimes. It was different with Granger, whose habits seemed so similar to his own. Severus wasn't sure why he enjoyed being around Hermione Granger so much, but it would continue to pester him until he figured it out.

***************

The next few days passed very quickly and were very busy. Hermione had convinced Harry to take dreamless sleep potion at night, and because of that, he didn't look as depressed or exhausted as he had before. In addition, she went with her friends to Diagon Alley to buy supplies, and also tested Selene on everything that she needed to know. Hermione had gotten copies of first year exams from all of the teachers, and Selene had scored well on all of them, better than the majority of the students who had actually attended Hogwarts for their first year. Dumbledore seemed pleased, and agreed that Selene would do just fine as a second-year student. Hermione was absolutely thrilled, because this proved to her that she might be able to teach after all. 

The day when the other students were set to arrive, Hermione began to move her belongings to her new room, the Head Girl's room. It was decorated in shades of white and lilac, most likely to appeal to female students of all houses. Hermione was pleased that she would no longer be forced to share a room with Parvati and Lavender, who were her friends, but often annoyed her.

After giving the dungeon room one last glance to make certain that she hadn't left anything behind, Hermione walked out, preparing to head for the Gryffindor common room. As she was walking past the door to Snape's quarters, it opened. Hermione jumped in surprise.

"Good afternoon, Miss Granger," Professor Snape told her.

"Hello, Professor Snape."

He began to walk in the opposite direction, then turned around. "Miss Granger." 

Hermione stopped in her tracks. The Potions Master continued. "Thank you for teaching my niece. She's a silly girl, but somehow she learned a lot, thanks to you." She just looked at him, her mouth wide open. Snape smirked at her. "I hope you'll continue using my library for your research. I have several books coming in that are hard to find, and will probably be of interest to you."

With several strides, he was down the hallway, leaving a dumbstruck Hermione gaping after him. Had he just…complimented her? Hermione could feel her face turning bright red. She was happy that Professor Snape had already left the hallway, and wasn't around to see her embarrassment at his remarks. He had always endeavored to find fault with her, but now… He was actually being nice to her. It sounded as though he didn't despise her as she had expected. What had happened to him?

Hermione leaned back against the wall, feeling dizzy, her pulse racing. If it had been any other professor, she wouldn't have been so shocked. But this was Snape! And there had been no sarcasm in his tone, which was utterly perplexing. She almost would have preferred for him to speak to her in his usual manner. That would have been explainable and wouldn't have caused her to feel so many unfamiliar emotions, which confused her more than any she had ever felt before. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 6**

Severus sat at the High Table, looking out over the four tables filled with children. The Hogwarts Express had just arrived, and now everyone was talking, catching up after the long summer. He felt the beginning of a migraine. It had been so much more peaceful when only about ten students had been there. He had been able to make his potions without disturbances, and he rarely saw any of the students. Well, except for his niece and Hermione Granger. But both of them seemed to actually be trying to learn. The influx of the rest of the students, both new and old, guaranteed that he would be forced to deal with thick-headed and ungrateful brats everyday because of his duties as Potions professor and Head of Slytherin House. He doubted that any of them would show any sign of promise in Potions. It seemed that the number of good Potions students decreased every year. 

Still sitting, he looked around. Minerva was the only other staff member who actually came to the feast on time. Even Albus wasn't there. Severus looked at Selene, who was sitting off to the side of the High Table, waiting to be sorted. She looked uncomfortable until Dennis Creevey came to stand by her and talked to her. As much as the Creevey boys annoyed him, he had to admit that he was glad that they had become friends with his niece. When he had first heard of her coming to Hogwarts, he had worried that history would repeat itself, and she would be alienated and friendless. _Like me, he thought. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted._

"Severus, Minerva," Albus addressed them, as he arrived at the table. He was with an attractive young woman, who looked somewhat familiar. "I'm sure you have both met Miss Fleur Delacour, the Beauxbatons representative in the Triwizard Tournament three years ago. She is our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." 

Severus gave her an abrupt nod as she sat down next to him. He remembered that she was part Veela, and that because of that, most of the boys had been chasing after her. He had caught her snogging Hogwarts boys in the Astronomy Tower several times late at night. She had caused a lot of trouble during that year, and would probably cause even more during this one.

His headache was beginning to get even worse. This year, like the previous fifteen years, he had applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position. _How wonderful_, he thought sarcastically. _Albus chose an girl who can't control her hormones, and also had absolutely no teaching experience, instead of me_. This was going to be a long year.

Finally, the huge doors of the Hall were thrown open by Hagrid. He was followed by a group of nervous first-years. Severus gave the children a scowl, hoping that their first impression of him was that he was not one to be trifled with. It was the same look he gave the incoming students every year, and it usually succeeded in intimidating them for the rest of their years at Hogwarts. Severus tuned out the Sorting Hat's new song, but paid attention when the Sorting Ceremony began.

He could barely control his impatience until Selene was finally called. He saw many of the students look at her in shock when they heard her last name.

Selene walked up to the stool and put on the hat. Severus struggled to listen as the hat began speaking: 

"Ah, you're related to Professor Snape, I see. I suppose your uncle wants you to be sorted into Slytherin. Unfortunately for him, your character is not that of a Slytherin." Severus cringed. _Not Gryffindor, please not Gryffindor, he thought to himself. "Your intellect is impressive, as is your courage. This is a very tough decision, for you display qualities of all of the houses. But, the most significant are your unwavering loyalty and your ability to work hard, so…HUFFLEPUFF!"_

The Hufflepuff students stood up and cheered as Severus groaned. Most of the people in the hall looked surprised. Severus scoffed at the disappointed look on Granger's face. He knew that she had been hoping that Selene would be put in Gryffindor and was delighted that her wish had not come true.

After the rest of the students had been sorted, the meal began. Fleur Delacour began talking to him, complaining about everything possible. The food here wasn't any good. Her rooms were too small. The ride on the Hogwarts Express had taken too long, and was extremely uncomfortable. The list went on and on, and Severus began to think that receiving the Cruciatus curse was preferable to listening to Delacour for another second. 

He scanned the crowd of students, his eyes falling on the Gryffindor table, where Hermione Granger was sitting. She was talking with a group of people, Weasley and Potter sitting on each side of her. Severus rolled his eyes. Those two idiots were constantly around her. _If only some of her intellect would rub off on them. Severus smirked. He had truly surprised himself when he spoke to her earlier. It had been very uncharacteristic of him. He had accidentally slipped into a mode that he reserved only for Slytherin students and his colleagues. He didn't know what his problem was, but because of Hermione Granger, he had done something unheard of—he had complimented a Gryffindor._

*******************

Hermione looked up at the High Table as Dumbledore spoke. He began by making general announcements about rules and Quidditch tryouts. Then he gestured to a young woman at the table. "I would like to introduce you all to our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Miss Fleur Delacour. I hope that you will all make Professor Delacour feel welcome at Hogwarts." The students began clapping and some of the boys whistled. 

The only student who didn't look happy was Ron. He turned to Hermione, an annoyed look on his face. "Fleur broke up with Bill a few months ago. She thought that she was too good for him."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Did she actually say that?"

"Well, no, but she made it pretty clear every time she came to our house. She was always rude to Mum just because her family was wealthy and ours isn't."

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look. She knew that Ron had always been sensitive about his family's financial situation. She knew that he wasn't looking forward to having Fleur Delacour as their professor, but Hermione was hoping that she might actually teach them a lot. There certainly had been a shortage of good Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers—in fact, the only good one had been Remus Lupin.    

Realizing that the meal was over, Hermione stood up. "First year Gryffindors, follow us!" She was joined by Ron, Ginny and Colin, who were prefects that year.

As she passed the Hufflepuff table, she saw Selene, who looked uncomfortable. Hermione gave her a warm smile. "Congratulations on getting into Hufflepuff. One of the main characteristics of Hufflepuff students is that they're excellent friends." A huge smile lit up Selene's face, which pleased Hermione. "Now go with Ernie, he'll show you the way to your dormitory." She nodded towards Ernie Macmillan, the Head Boy.

"Thanks, Hermione. I'll see you later!" Selene told her, then left the Hall with the rest of her House. 

Hermione then took her own students to Gryffindor Tower. She stayed late in the common room, talking quietly in the corner with Ginny Weasley about her latest crush, Colin Creevey. Hermione was delighted to hear about that. She had been worried that Ginny's feelings for Harry might develop into what they had been several years earlier. Which would not be a good thing. 

A feeling of sadness swept over Hermione as she walked back to her room. It was not in Gryffindor tower and she disliked being so far away from her friends. Of course, she finally had her own room and bathroom. And a pass to the Restricted Section of the library. No, she wouldn't give up her Head Girl privileges for anything. _Oh well,_ she thought. _At least I'm out of those dark and drafty dungeons._ Of course, she had been closer to Professor Snape's library there. And to Professor Snape…

Hermione groaned, sinking down onto her bed. After her encounter with Snape, she had attempted to get him—and her reactions to him—off of her mind. She had mostly succeeded throughout the Sorting Feast and afterwards when she was surrounded by her friends. But now that she was alone, Hermione found herself thinking of him again. And she really didn't want to do that. Doing so only brought up questions that she didn't know the answers to. Usually when she had a problem, she would go to the library. But Hermione didn't think that books could help her now. She put on her nightgown and got into bed. After several hours of tossing and turning, she finally fell asleep.

The next morning, she ate breakfast with Ron and Harry, discussing their upcoming classes. All three of them were taking difficult N.E.W.T.-level classes. Hermione had been surprised that her two best friends had opted to take so many challenging courses, but they were determined to become Aurors. Unlike in their earlier years at Hogwarts, the students now took fewer classes but with longer class periods.

"Ah, we have Potions for three hours twice a week!" Ron complained. 

Harry wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Just what we need is six hours a week with Snape!" 

"Maybe he'll be better now that we're in his advanced class?" Hermione suggested. Ron and Harry both gave her unconvinced looks.

She only hoped that Professor Snape's agreeable behavior wouldn't cease with the beginning of the school year. Strange emotions for him aside, he had actually been pleasant to be around. Well, almost. He was still Snape, the slimy Potions Master, but Hermione had begun to see a side of him that she actually liked. 

The three of them walked with Neville, who had been encouraged by his O.W.L. scores to continue in Potions and go into Auror training with Ron and Harry. 

Their Potions class was the only one for seventh-years, and the first one Hermione had ever been in with all four houses. There were three Hufflepuffs, five Ravenclaws, and the four of them. The rest of the students were in Slytherin. 

The entire classroom became silent as Professor Snape walked in. "Good morning, students. Welcome to Advanced Potions, the most grueling class any of you will probably ever take." He paused to give them all a glare, his gaze stopping on Ron, Harry and Neville. "I realize that many of you are taking this class because it is required for the occupation that you are aspiring towards and that only a few of you will actually appreciate the art involved in brewing potions." Hermione could have sworn that his eyes fell on her when he said the last part. _No, I'm probably just imagining it. _"However," Snape continued. "I will not tolerate anything less than perfection." 

They began by making a very difficult medical potion. The students were forbidden to help others in the class, and Hermione kept glancing over at Neville with worry. As Snape came to their table, he looked at both of their potions, and, not finding any errors, left to pick on other students. He seemed disappointed when he walked away from Neville. Hermione couldn't hide the proud look on her face as she looked at Neville. She knew that he had spent countless hours brushing up on Potions, his worst subject, in the hope that  he could do  well enough on the N.E.W.T. exams to become an Auror, like his parents. Unfortunately, Harry and Ron both had mistakes in their potions and they were at the receiving end of Snape's merciless bullying for the rest of the class. 

At the end of the class, Ron and Harry quickly rushed out. Hermione packed up her things slowly, and got up after the rest of the class had left. She could feel his eyes on her the entire time, and it was disconcerting. She got up, trying to hide her discomfort.

"Goodbye, Professor Snape," she said as she passed by him.

He looked surprised, for none of the students, not even the Slytherins, had acknowledged him after class was over. "Goodbye, Miss Granger. Have a nice day."

Hermione turned away from him, feeling her face grow hot. She absolutely did not want him to see her blushing. "Thank you, sir," she responded, leaving the room quickly. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 7**

For Severus, the first two weeks of school went by very quickly. Nearly all of the first-years were unintelligent and did sloppy work in class, the same with most of the continuing students. Unfortunately he was not allowed the freedom to deny access to his N.E.W.T. class to students who did well on the O.W.L. exams. How Potter and Weasley managed to achieve the scores they got, he would never know. Severus was sure that neither of them had the brains to get past all of the anti-cheating spells used on those tests. The student who surprised him the most was Longbottom, who had actually made some successful potions in the past few class sessions. He was one of the thickest students that Severus had ever had the displeasure of teaching… Or at least he had been up until this year.

Even stranger than the Longbottom phenomenon was the way he always felt his pulse quicken whenever Hermione Granger walked into the classroom. Severus no longer thought of her as an obnoxious know-it-all. He was now beginning to see her as one of the most brilliant students—in fact, one of the most intelligent people in general—that he had ever met.

Potter and Weasley in Advanced Potions, Longbottom _not exploding cauldrons, strange and unsettling feelings for Granger. What had caused all of these peculiar occurrences? It seemed that the entire world was going insane. Or at least all making him insane. Especially those damn Gryffindors. _

There was a knock at the door. Severus briefly hoped that it was Granger… but immediately scolded himself for thinking that. She had been to his library a few times in the past two weeks. Although they made little conversation, her presence comforted him somewhat. He almost liked having her in the room—it made him feel like he wasn't alone in his enjoyment of reading and researching.

Severus opened the door. Fleur Delacour was standing there. _Damn, he thought. She had been talking to him every night at dinner, and visiting him constantly. He got the feeling that she was interested in more than a friendship, which Severus didn't know how to deal with. Never in his entire life had he been faced with unwanted female attention. Especially not from anybody who was physically attractive. Most males would love to have somebody like Delacour, who was attractive and flirty. Severus was not one of those men. To him, the important qualities in women were deeper than that. A quickness of mind and a love for acquiring new knowledge were important. Not that Delacour was stupid—she was in fact, very intelligent. But she didn't have the wittiness that he admired in others, and her personality _definitely_ didn't match his._

So why was she interested in him? Severus had a strong suspicion that it had something to do with an article that had appeared in The Quibbler a few months earlier, discussing his recent inheritance. With the death of his brother, he was now the only living male Snape, which meant that he was entitled to a large fortune. Severus had written a furious letter to the editor of The Quibbler, Lovegood, who had seemingly ignored it. Now the only way to make up for it was to take it out on Lovegood's daughter in class, which was quite enjoyable. 

"May I come in?" Delacour asked. Her French accent was almost completely gone since she had spent so much time working with others who spoke only English.

"Of course, Miss Delacour," he responded abruptly.

"Oh Severus, please call me Fleur! There's no need to be formal with me!" She laughed and batted her eyelashes. Severus almost felt physically ill. "Can you help me with my class lesson plans?" she asked him, handing him a few sheets of papers.

Severus nodded, sat down on the sofa, and began to look over them. Her ideas for classes were actually not too bad. It wasn't the same type of information he would teach if he were the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor (which would probably never happen at the rate things were going now), but it was better than what most of the previous teachers for that class had done.

Suddenly he felt her breath, warm on his neck. She whispered in his ear. "Severus… I know that I only met you a few weeks ago, but—" 

Severus quickly stood up, not wanting her to go on. At that moment he heard what sounded like a door closing. He glanced towards the room's entrance, but didn't see anything. He shrugged off the momentary panic that he felt. It was probably just his imagination; of course, it wouldn't be good if anybody had seen Delacour all over him. "Miss Delacour," he began.

"Fleur," she corrected him.

He sighed, realizing that he had no idea how to refuse her. "I have papers to grade and a lot of things to do…" he told her sternly, hoping she would take the hint. She did, but looked somewhat hurt. Severus almost felt guilty, but then shrugged that feeling away. It would be better not to encourage her. He wasn't interested and she was, quite possibly, only after his money. He only hoped that she would not resume her attentions towards him.

*************

Hermione rushed away from the dungeons, feeling tears form in her eyes. She had suspected something had been going on between Professor Snape and Professor Delacour because the two of them always spoke to each other at mealtimes. However, when she had gone to Snape's library and seen the two of them together, it had hit her hard. _Why do I care so much? _she wondered. It was none of her business whether or not Professor Snape was interested in somebody. So why did she feel so hurt?

"Hermione!" she heard a voice call to her. It was Selene, most likely on the way to see Snape.

Hermione didn't want to explain anything—she didn't know _how to explain it—so she just turned and ran._

She ignored the concerned looks of her fellow students, feeling a need to leave the castle as soon as possible. She didn't stop running until she reached one of her favorite places to think, a small secluded area next to the lake. She sat down, her back against a tree. At that moment, the tears she had been trying to hold in began flowing freely down her cheeks. Her breaths came out in sobs.

Hermione didn't understand her reaction. She told herself that it didn't bother her, that it didn't matter whether or not Professor Snape was in love with someone else. However, she was beginning to believe the opposite. In the past, although she had despised his personality, she had respected him. However, this had changed completely when she got to know more about him. Now she no longer disliked him; in fact it was quite the opposite. Her regard for him had grown into much more. It had gotten to a point where she constantly hoped to see him, and relished the moments that she spent with him. Even when they didn't speak, she enjoyed nothing more than being in his company. _Oh god_, she thought, feeling sick to her stomach, _I'm jealous_. Never in the first six years she had spent at Hogwarts did she ever think that she would actually _want_ Snape's attentions. The thought hadn't even occurred to her. He had always been rude to her, constantly searching for fault in her work, pointing out flaws that didn't even exist. But now…well, she was beginning to like him. Not in the way she liked her favorite teachers, but, well…she didn't know how to describe it.

"Hermione?" a voice behind her spoke. Ron.

She quickly wiped away her tears, hoping that he wouldn't notice how red her eyes were. "Hullo, Ron," she said in a high pitched voice, a dismal effort to sound cheerful. "What brings you out here?" 

"I've been worried sick about you! You missed dinner." Ron gave her a questioning look. Hermione just shook her head. "What's the matter, Hermione?" he asked in a low voice, putting his arms around her. Hermione didn't speak—she didn't want to even _try_ to put her emotions into words. Instead, she put her head on Ron's chest, grateful for the comfort he was offering. Right now, she just needed a friend.

*************

Selene stood in the hallway, watching as Hermione ran away. She was completely baffled. Why had Hermione ignored her? Selene swallowed back tears, worried that she had done something to upset Hermione. 

_Or maybe…_She looked in the direction that Hermione had come from. Her uncle's rooms were in that area. Determinedly, she walked to his quarters, her hand raised to knock on the door. Before she could do so, the door opened, and Professor Delacour rushed out. Selene's mouth opened wide in shock. What had _she been doing here? _

It wasn't that Selene hated Professor Delacour. She actually liked her class very much, although it wasn't her favorite. But Delacour always behaved differently towards her than the other students, acting as though her achievements were more amazing and that everything she did deserved praise. She had a feeling that since her uncle was the Potions professor, Professor Delacour decided to treat her like a baby. It was annoying. She _was twelve years old, after all. _

"Uncle Severus?" she asked, peering around the door. 

"Are you planning on standing there all night, or are you going to come in?" he snapped at her. 

_Great_, she thought,_ he's in a bad mood. Again._ "Why was Professor Delacour here?" she asked. 

Severus looked irritated at her question. "She wanted to discuss the Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum."

Selene took a deep breath, then spoke quickly, with nervousness in her voice. "Uncle Severus, was Hermione here too? Because I saw her running away from here and she looked upset and I'm worried about her. Did you say something cruel to her?" 

Selene tried to replace the uneasy expression on her face with a glare that she had actually learned from him. However, it was hard to do under his intimidating gaze.

"I assure you, I haven't seen Miss Granger since her Potions class this morning." But, she saw a glimmer of something in his eyes that came and went so quickly that she would have missed it if she had blinked. He was worried.

The sneer came back to his face. "Are you here for a reason, or did you just come by to pry into my personal business?"

A few months earlier, his tone would have upset her, but she was beginning to get used to it. She knew that her uncle loved her, despite his sarcastic comments and his occasional rudeness. "I need to borrow a book for my History of Magic essay. The library is out of the one I need," she told him. After he got the book, she left quickly. 

As she walked down the corridor, Selene wondered what it was that Hermione was so upset about. Her intuition told her that it was something to do with her uncle. She had watched the two of them over the past few months, had seen the way they glanced at each other when they thought that nobody was looking. And part of her hoped that something would happen. She loved her uncle but had been sad that he didn't have anybody in his life. The few evenings Selene had spent with her uncle and Hermione, he had seemed almost happy, which was rare for him. As for Hermione, her face always lit up whenever she saw him. Selene sighed. The two of them seemed so oblivious to it. If only they would admit their feelings…   


	8. Chapter 8

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 8**

As Hermione's sobbing came to a halt, Ron pulled away from her and took a deep breath. Hermione panicked, knowing what was coming. She shook her head, feeling the threat of resurfacing tears. "Ron, please, don't—"

He put a finger to her lips, silencing her. "Hermione…" he gazed into her eyes intently. The look on his face was so different from the Ron she knew, so much that it scared her. "Hermione, I've liked you for a long time." He paused for the briefest moment, and Hermione tried to speak, but was silenced again when Ron continued. "In fact, I'm in love with you."

All of the time she had spent worrying about Ron since Harry had told her about his feelings hadn't prepared her for this moment. She stared in shock. Finally she realized that tears were beginning to roll down her cheeks and Ron was still watching her with anticipation. "I'm sorry Ron." She tried to take a deep breath. "You're one of the best friends I've ever had, but I don't feel the same way about you." Her voice cracked during the last few words as she watched him. 

He looked completely stunned. She expected him to be angry, to scream and yell at her. It _was_ Ron, after all. However, he didn't do any of those things.

"Okay, Hermione," he said softly, then walked away. She stared after him, unable to comprehend his reaction. It was so unlike him to just accept it and leave. It scared her to see him acting so odd about it, different from the way she would have thought. 

************

Harry sat on a rock between the lake and the castle, watching Ron and Hermione near the shore. Harry felt a terrible aching in his chest at the sight of the two of them together. Both he and Ron had been worried when Hermione hadn't come to dinner, especially when some of their classmates mentioned seeing her running through the halls, in an agitated state. Ron had insisted on going to see her. Alone. Harry was able to take a hint—it was obvious that Ron was hoping to comfort her… and possibly to tell Hermione how he had felt about her for all these years. Ron had attempted to tell her several times before, but had lost his nerve each time. Maybe tonight would be the night? Harry was pretty sure that Hermione didn't see Ron in that way, and he had, in the past, attempted to discourage Ron from saying anything to her. 

However, once he had realized his own feelings for Ron, Harry had begun to wonder if he had done that because he was jealous. What if Hermione really was in love with Ron? She hadn't really told Harry whether or not she was—instead, she had been relatively vague about her feelings…

His fears were dispelled when he saw Ron rushing away from where Hermione was standing. Harry had known that one of three things would happen. The one he had expected would be that Ron wouldn't be able to tell her. However, it seemed that he had. The only other two options had been for her to reject him or to tell him that she felt the same. It was obvious by Ron's state which of those had occurred. 

"Ron!" Harry yelled as Ron passed him. Ron just ignored him. Harry stood up and tried to catch up with him. "Ron!"

Ron turned around abruptly and gave Harry an icy glare. "Leave me alone, Harry."

Harry stared after Ron, open-mouthed, feeling like he had just been stung. The tone that Ron had used was one that he reserved for Malfoy or others that he disliked. He never spoke that way to Harry. The thing that hurt Harry most was that he knew that he deserved it. 

_Imagine, I was actually wishing that Hermione would refuse Ron. I knew that it would make him miserable, yet I still hoped it would happen. _Suddenly Harry felt terrible, ready to be sick. He was a horrible person. His happiness would come as a result of the person he loved most being upset. Harry sighed. Why did it have to be like this?

************

Hermione grudgingly got out of bed the next morning. She knew what day it was—September 19th. Her seventeenth birthday. She was now considered an adult in the wizarding world. However, she didn't feel happy or excited. She just wanted to spend the entire day locked up in her room. But, Hermione had class, and she supposed that she should do something enjoyable today. So she decided to go. 

When Hermione got down to the Great Hall, she didn't see Ron anywhere. Sitting next to Harry, she noticed that he looked as sad as she felt. There were dark circles under his eyes, as though he hadn't slept at all. "Harry?" she said tentatively. 

"Oh, hello, Hermione," he stated, seeing her for the first time.

"Are you alright?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, it's just that Ron…"

"Is he okay?"

"He seems pretty upset. He only spoke to me once, and that was to tell me to go away. He hasn't said anything to anybody other than that." 

Harry turned to her, and angry look on his face. "What did you say to him?" he demanded. Hermione's heart sank and she felt tears form in her eyes at the harshness of his voice. 

"I just told him that he was only a friend and nothing more. That's it, Harry," she whispered. What did he think she should have said? It would have been cruel to lead him on when she wasn't interested. 

"I'm sorry, Hermione. I just hate to see him like this." Harry gave her a sympathetic look. Based on the glance Harry gave her, Hermione imagined that she must look very depressed. "I have to go. I'll see you in Potions." He gave her a hug, and then walked away.

She sighed and closed her eyes for a few seconds. She felt like it was completely her fault that Ron was acting this way. He had seemed to think that she felt the same way as he did. If only she had seen the signs sooner, she would have been able to make it easier on both of them. 

Hermione frowned when she realized that Professor Snape was staring at her, and had been watching her the entire time since she had walked into the hall. With a scowl, she thought, _he's probably enjoying my misery. _She noticed that Fleur Delacour was talking to him, but he didn't seem to be paying attention. His gaze was fixed on Hermione. She felt her heart beating quickly and her face turning red. She thought about her reaction to seeing him with Professor Delacour the day before. It was stupid, really. It was nothing that she should be concerned about. Despite the fact that she knew that Fleur was completely wrong for him. The type of woman who would be good for him would be someone who respected his brainpower, and could hold her own in an intelligent conversation with him. Someone who was interested in learning new things, researching and reading. Someone like Hermione.__

************

Severus walked into his classroom, pleased that the chatter stopped completely once the students caught sight of him. Breakfast had seemed longer than usual, with Delacour talking to him like she had been normally. Apparently she hadn't been able to take a hint. Or she was just extremely persistent. She wasn't completely daft, so he supposed that the latter was true. However, it led him to believe that she truly was after only one thing. His money. 

Instead of actually listening to her, he had watched Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. Something Potter had said made Granger upset. Then Potter hugged her, which evoked a strange feeling inside of Severus. Jealousy? _Absolutely not_, he thought to himself. More like disdain. Potter was an idiot who didn't seem to understand how superior Hermione Granger was to him. 

Recently, Severus had been thinking of nothing but her. He knew that she had been in the dungeons the night before and was still wondering if she had seen him with Fleur Delacour. Was that what she was upset about? He doubted it. It was probably something to do with Potter or Weasley. 

His thoughts were confirmed when Weasley walked into the room late. Severus immediately took off points for tardiness, and surprisingly, Weasley looked as though he didn't really care. He seemed distraught, and walked to his normal seat next to Potter, without acknowledging either him or Granger, both of whom gave him questioning glances. Severus decided that there must be some sort of lovers' quarrel between Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. Or maybe Weasley was envious because she apparently preferred Potter over him. 

Severus had been able to admit that he was beginning to regard Miss Granger above the rest of the students and most of the staff. However, he was still infuriated that somebody as brilliant as her spent all of her time with those two dolts. 

He began the class as usual, instructing the seventh-years on the proper procedure to make a very difficult burn healing potion. He was interrupted when Fleur Delacour came to the door. "Severus, can you help me for a moment?" 

Gesturing towards the students who were now filling their cauldrons with an irritated look on his face, he snapped, "I'm in the middle of teaching a class."

He stood by impatiently as she asked him yet another question about her Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Did she really have to come to him for every insignificant problem? He turned back to his class and his eyes fell on Granger, who was looking at Delacour until she left. Then her eyes met his own. He was taken aback by the expression on her face. However, he was unable to contain a feeling deep down inside of him, one of immense glee. 

Hermione Granger was jealous.


	9. Chapter 9

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 9**

Severus spent the rest of the class session trying not to watch Hermione Granger. She seemed very upset, but still managed to make a perfect potion. That was more than could be said for Potter and Weasley, whose potions were comparable to Neville Longbottom's in his first few years at Hogwarts. Of course, Longbottom in his current state had actually made a potion that had turned out decent. Severus didn't know how he did it, for Granger had not spoken to Longbottom throughout the entire class, which led him to believe that Longbottom had managed to do everything on his own. It was quite astonishing. 

"Potter, Weasley, ten points from each of you for failure to concentrate during class," he barked at them when Potions ended. They both quickly left the classroom, neither of them speaking to any of the other students. He noticed that Granger was packing up her books very slowly, and was the last student remaining in the class. When she finished, she rushed past him, without saying anything, which was unusual for her. "Goodbye, Miss Granger," he called after her, not wanting to let her leave without hearing the sound of her voice. She mumbled something in return, and he noticed her face turning red. Severus smirked at the blush that formed on her face, relishing her discomfort. 

There had been no mistaking her conduct during class. She had been envious of Fleur Delacour. All of the signs pointed to one thing, which seemed highly unlikely. It was as if Hermione Granger was interested in him. He had no idea why she would be. All of the students hated him—it was something he made sure of. And yet, over the past few months when he was around her, he felt his guard dropping. He had actually been nice to her! And the worst part of it was that he enjoyed acting that way towards her. It gave him pleasure to see the smile on her face when he was kind to her. His pulse raced whenever he saw it, because with it came the realization that he had been the one to put it there. He couldn't think of any time in his life when he had actually cared about somebody else's happiness.    

Was this a good thing? Something deep down inside of him was screaming yes, that it was wonderful. Severus didn't understand those feelings; they were strange and new to him. He wasn't even sure if he wanted to explore the implications of these emotions. Although she was absolutely brilliant, she was still a student. He shouldn't be thinking about her as anything besides that. But he was, and had been since June.

His interest in her had been developing so gradually that he hadn't actually realized it until today, when he noticed her strange behavior. Severus knew that it would drive him insane until he figured out exactly what she was thinking. Of course, he rationalized, that would probably never happen, so he would be forced to live the rest of his life as a lunatic.

He wondered if she would come to his library that night. He had received several new books that couldn't even be found in the Restricted Section, ones which Hermione Granger had expressed interest in reading.

However, she did not come. Nor did she come the next night, or at any time in the next three weeks. 

Severus could feel himself growing lonelier and lonelier as the days wore on. Over the summer and the first two weeks of the term, he had become accustomed to her presence. It wasn't just that he wanted another person in the room (for he knew that Fleur Delacour would have been happy to oblige him in that respect). No, that definitely wasn't the case. He wanted _her_ to be there. At one point, having her near had been absolutely maddening and annoying. But now, he felt that way because she _wasn't there. _

Despite this longing, Severus knew that it was better this way, even though it was torturous. He couldn't seek her out; it was already bad enough that he had such a strong desire to see her. There was no way he could act on it, because she was a student. Not only was it was contrary to all of his principles, but there were also rules against it. 

"Severus, I've been noticing that you seem quite worn out recently," Albus told him one day in the middle of October. "And it's no wonder. With the classes you teach and all of your work for the Order, especially with the potions you are currently brewing, you have been doing the work of three people. I think you should find an assistant." Severus scowled, as Albus continued. "Unfortunately, we are quite limited in our choices, since it must be somebody who is trustworthy and aware of the Order of the Phoenix. Therefore, I think that it should be Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, or Hermione Granger. Or perhaps Neville Longbottom…"

 "You want me to be aided by a student, Albus? Are you sure that is wise?" Severus wasn't sure which idea was more preposterous, having a student assistant, or having Potter, Weasley, or Longbottom as an assistant. In the years that Severus had known him, Headmaster Dumbledore had come up with many peculiar ideas, but this had to be the worst.

"The last time I checked, the four of them were enrolled in your Advanced Potions class, which only the top students are admitted into."

"You know that I only allowed Potter, Weasley, and Longbottom into my class because I'm not allowed to deny admittance to any student with the appropriate number of O.W.L.s," he said snappishly to the Headmaster.

Albus, used to Severus' temper, spoke calmly back to him. "Very well then, Severus. Since you object so adamantly to Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley and Mr. Longbottom, I think that Miss Granger would be suitable for the position."

Although he momentarily felt a twinge of dismay at losing the argument with the Headmaster, Severus almost smiled. Suddenly the emptiness inside of him felt like it was filling up again. Just the thought of spending all that time with Hermione Granger was enough to cause his melancholy to fade. How different this was from the way he had felt just a few months earlier! It made him happy, but scared him at the same time. Part of him wished that these feelings would just go away. It was against his nature to act like a lovesick adolescent. Especially over someone like her, an irritating Gryffindor who was sickeningly perfect. Nonetheless, it was impossible for him to deny it—he was falling for Hermione Granger. 

***********

Hermione took a deep breath. Why had she agreed to this? Actually, she knew why—because Headmaster Dumbledore had convinced her that her assistance would be a valuable asset to the Order of the Phoenix. It had been impossible to refuse. 

She slowly walked to the dungeon, dreading seeing her Potions professor. She had seen him scarcely over the past few weeks, mainly because she had been avoiding him. She always tried to leave class the moment it was over, and arrived right before it began, in order to prevent herself from being alone with him. However, thoughts of Professor Snape constantly plagued her mind. Although several weeks had passed since she had become aware of his relationship with Professor Delacour, the misery she felt hadn't gone away. Because of that, Hermione wasn't sure how she would be able to bear spending a lot of time brewing potions with him.

She sighed as she arrived at his office door, and then knocked.

"Come in," his voice said. Hermione entered apprehensively. "Good evening, Miss Granger," Snape said to her and smiled. Hermione was briefly taken aback. It was so rare to see a genuine smile on his face. Despite her reservations about seeing him, she found herself smiling back.

"Miss Granger, the reason Headmaster Dumbledore was so insistent that you help me is that I am making a very powerful potion for the fight against the Dark Lord. It is very difficult to brew—especially for only one person—and takes a lot of preparation time. There have been only a handful of successes in making this potion. It is called the Life-Draining Draught and, obviously, depletes the power of the person it is administered to. It is our hope that it will weaken Voldemort enough so that it will be possible to defeat him." At that point, Professor Snape handed Hermione a stack of parchment sheets, listing the ingredients and procedure for brewing it. She had read of it in Moste Potente Potions six months earlier, but had never actually thought that she would get the chance to make it. After she finished glancing at the instructions, the two of them headed to Snape's laboratory. 

"Miss Granger," the Potions Master began while they walked, "I must say, I'm surprised you haven't taken advantage of my collection of books. You seemed so eager to read some of them a month ago." Hermione's face turned red, and she stopped. _He almost sounds disappointed. But, she knew that was impossible._

"I'm sorry, sir. But I was worried that I might disturb you and your girlfriend by being there." Hermione was surprised that her remark had come out in such a biting manner.  

"My girlfriend?" He seemed confused.

Hermione gave him a spiteful glance. "Or lover, or whatever it is you call her," she snapped. He still looked puzzled. She sighed. "Professor Snape, I know all about you and Professor Delacour. You don't have to hide it from me."

"Oh…I see," Snape said hesitantly. Then he smirked, which was absolutely infuriating to Hermione. How could he be so cruel? She turned away from him, stalking heatedly towards the laboratory. _I knew that working with him would be a bad idea, she thought. Snape didn't make any other mention of it; instead, he directed her on the part of the potion she would be working on._

After she began stirring her cauldron, Hermione felt her anger slowly evaporating. It was much easier to channel all of her emotions into preparing the potion than she had originally suspected. As they worked, she began to realize why it was so vital for multiple wizards to work on it. The two of them needed to brew two separate mixtures, let each of them sit, and then add them together. It would be nearly impossible for one person to do it on his or her own (of course, Snape would have probably attempted this if Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't suggested otherwise). 

"Now what?" she asked when she finished her portion. 

"We wait twenty minutes," he responded. "This will ring when it is time to add the two together." He pointed to a bell, which she assumed had been charmed to work as a timer.

They read over the next set of instructions. Then Hermione began to chop the dandelion roots for the second step of the potion brewing process.

"Miss Granger!" Snape was suddenly right behind her, stopping her hand. "If you insist on slicing your dandelions in such a furious manner, they'll eventually turn into a powder, which will ruin the potion." 

The soft touch of his hand on hers and the warmth of his breath on her neck were enough to cause all of the blood to drain from her face. She wanted to say something in response to his snide comment, but his nearness prevented it. He removed his hand, but was still standing behind her. Feeling as though she was under a spell, Hermione continued cutting the roots in silence, willing her hand not to shake with nervousness under his intent gaze. 

"That's much better, Hermione," he said to her in a low, silky voice, his lips right next to her ear. It took her a few seconds to realize that he had just called her by her first name. Her heart began hammering in her chest. He was so close to her…

At that moment, the bell rang. Hermione jumped. Professor Snape was across the room in several seconds, at the side of his own cauldron, already preparing it to add it to hers. "We have a window of one minute to combine our separate mixtures into one. If we do it too late, the potion will be ruined and we'll need to start over." His voice—although a bit more anxious than usual—was back to its normal tone.

The two of them managed to pour their cauldrons into a larger one before the time limit was over.  Hermione's heart was still pounding and she was trembling, but she, luckily, didn't allow that to prevent her from following Snape's directions. 

Neither of them spoke after they mixed the two substances together. Hermione went back to cutting her dandelion roots, and then put them in a bigger mixture. She could feel Snape's eyes on her the entire time. After she added in the rest of the ingredients, he spoke. "Miss Granger, you may go now. It's necessary for this part of the potion to sit for two days. I expect you back here the evening after tomorrow."

Hermione nodded, her voice still failing her, then left the room as fast as she could. She was getting more confused about the Potions Master with every encounter. He had actually called her by her given name. And his voice… the way he had spoken was so different from normal. He rarely spoke to her without sarcasm, but every time he did, she was left utterly baffled. And it was impossible to get the memory of his touch out of her head. She didn't understand him, not at all. Would she ever? Probably not. Hermione sighed as she got ready for bed. She was positive that she had a long, sleepless night ahead of her. 


	10. Chapter 10

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 10**

Hermione sat in her favorite spot on the banks of the lake. She had been there for over an hour, just staring at the water, lost in her thoughts. Hermione sighed. Working with Professor Snape was truly the opportunity of a lifetime. Not only was he one of the few Potions Masters in the world, but the potion they were making had the possibility of defeating Voldemort. However, she still began to dread their sessions in the laboratory. It wasn't that she disliked being around Snape. In fact, it was quite the opposite; she found something new about him everyday to make her like him even more. That was the problem.

It had all started with his hands. One day after she had finished with her portion of the potion, she began to watch him sifting through the ingredients. She hadn't noticed that they were so smooth…so perfect. One would have expected somebody who worked with his hands regularly to have calluses and other imperfections. But no, they were absolutely beautiful.

The next day it had been his voice, followed by his eyes. She had never thought her Potions professor to be attractive, and—as far as she knew—the rest of the students in school agreed with her. His skin was too pale, his hair too greasy, his nose too big, and his teeth were so bad that she wasn't even sure if her parents, two of the best dentists she knew of, could make them look decent. But, with the way her emotions responded to the sight of him, he could have been the most handsome man in the world. 

And it wasn't just physical. He constantly amazed her with his extensive knowledge of all subjects. One day while they were waiting for part of the potion to brew, Hermione had begun to study Transfiguration and Snape had taken out a Dickens novel. Hermione had asked him about the book, and was amazed that he actually read Muggle literature. She found that he was also a fan of Shakespeare, Hardy, and many others whose books were favorites of Hermione. The two of them had discussed the writings of their favorite authors for the next few hours. 

There was also the look in his eyes whenever he talked about potion-making. She had never seen anybody so passionate about anything. She knew that he applied for the Defense Against the Dark Arts job every year, and was beginning to realize why Dumbledore had never given him that position. It would be too much of a loss to the Hogwarts Potions Department if Professor Snape didn't teach the class; despite his strictness in the classroom, he was exceptional in the subject.

Every new discovery about the mysterious Potions Master made Hermione grow more and more depressed about something that would never happen. She knew that he didn't feel the same way about her as she did about him… it just wasn't possible. Although she felt like he looked upon her differently than he had in the past (for he certainly was treating her better), it was only as a professor regards a clever student, nothing more than that. Why would it be anything more? She wasn't beautiful like Fleur Delacour; she was just…well, average. No matter what she wished to happen, he would never see her as anything but one of his Potions students. 

Was she falling in love with him? Hermione didn't know. She had never actually been in love with anyone. Sure, she loved her friends, and her parents, but this was different from those. Wasn't love supposed to be a happy feeling?

"Hermione?" Harry's voice said behind her. She turned around as he spoke. "Are you okay? You've been out here for an hour." He held up the Marauder's Map with a sheepish smile.

"Yeah, Harry, I'm fine…" Her voice cracked as she spoke, suggesting that she really wasn't all right. Hermione looked down at the ground, her hair hiding her face.

Harry sat down next to her and brushed a few strands out of her eyes. She looked up at him. "Is it because of the way Ron has been acting, Hermione?"

Hermione sighed. Over the past few weeks, Ron had barely been speaking to Hermione. "Partly," she whispered. "I wish that things would be back to the way they were before. I miss having him as a friend." Hermione closed her eyes for a few seconds. Should she tell Harry what was really going on, that she had a bigger problem than Ron? She was sure that Ron would get over it in time. But, her feelings for Snape would remain unreciprocated. 

"Harry…" Hermione looked down as her voice trailed off. _Stop being such a coward, she said to herself. _You're a Gryffindor;_ __just admit it already! With that thought in mind, she took a deep breath, stared straight into Harry's eyes, and said it. "I'm in love with Professor Snape."_

Harry's face was a mixture of disbelief and shock. In fact, Hermione was surprised at herself for actually saying it so bluntly. Harry looked like he was waiting for her to deny it. Hermione kept a serious expression, and Harry finally shook his head incredulously.

"_Snape?_" he spat out. "Hermione, are you insane?! He's the cruelest teacher in the school. He enjoys seeing others in pain!"

Her breath caught in her throat. The thought of telling Harry hadn't even occurred to her until a few minutes earlier. If it had, she might have been prepared for his reaction. Obviously he wouldn't accept it. 

"Harry, he… he's not like that," Hermione stuttered. She knew how Harry felt about Snape. Oh, why had she told him? 

Harry gave her an unconvinced look. "It must be some sort of spell—"

"Harry, he's absolutely brilliant and—"

"—or maybe he made a love potion. Yes, that's it—"

"—he's been acting so different from the way he had in the past—"

"—definitely a potion; he _is the Potions professor after all—"_

"—and he's made so many sacrifices for the Order of the Phoenix—"

"Come on, Hermione. We have to tell Dumbledore what that bastard did to you!"

"Harry, he didn't do anything to me!" Hermione exclaimed in frustration. He wasn't listening! "There was no spell, no potion. These feelings have come on so gradually that it's nothing like that. It would be easier if it was!"

This was so aggravating! If her best friend wouldn't accept it, certainly nobody else would. Not that she would tell anyone else.

Harry stood up and began pacing. "This is ridiculous! Of all the people in the school, he is—"

"—the smartest, the one who reads the most, the only other person who has the same love of knowledge and learning as me," Hermione said, finishing his sentence. "Harry, is it really that impossible for me to be in love with him?"

Harry remained silent, appearing to be deep in thought. Finally, he sat back down next to her. "You really do have feelings for him, don't you, 'Mione?"

Hermione nodded. "He doesn't feel the same way about me," she said forlornly.

"Don't give up hope, Hermione," Harry told her. "_I'm not. With Ron, I mean."_

Hermione stared at Harry for a few seconds. Then a small smile crept onto her face, and she threw her arms around him. It was very important to her that Harry accepted it. He was her best friend (well, one of her best friends, but the other one was currently not speaking to her). "Thanks for understanding, Harry," Hermione said softly.   

"I suppose that you being in love with Snape can't be any stranger than me being in love with Ron," Harry told her jokingly, but with a sad look on his face. Hermione felt a lump in her throat. She had been so concerned with her own problems that she hadn't even realized what Harry had been going through. In fact, most of her spare time was spent either studying or helping Professor Snape with the potion. _I've been such a terrible friend_, she thought.

 "I'm sorry that I haven't been around lately," Hermione told him, wishing that there was some way to make it up to him. And things with Ron might be better if she hadn't been so self-absorbed.

"Don't worry about it, Hermione," Harry said. "Now you'd better go; you don't want to be late for Snape." He gave her a teasing smile.

Hermione shook her head and walked away. She truly did hope that Harry and Ron managed to work things out with each other, but knew that the situation with Snape was different. For one thing, he was taken. And he was her teacher! It just wouldn't work. 

Hermione walked to Snape's laboratory, with mixed feelings of trepidation and pleasure.

****************

"Miss Granger, you're late," Severus said gruffly as she walked through the door, two minutes after she was supposed to be there. She ignored him and began getting ready to brew the next part of the potion. 

He raised his eyebrows in surprise as he watched her prepare She hadn't spoken to him at all since she had arrived in the lab.  

He felt a dry amusement at his own thoughts. Her incessant chatter had always annoyed him… and suddenly he was disappointed that she had finally shut up. _What the hell is wrong with me? _he mused. 

He had always belittled men who acted like idiots around women, but he was now turning into one. He actually missed the irritating prattle of the Gryffindor know-it-all! And it was close to impossible to cast aside the feeling of delight whenever she entered the room… or the unhappiness when she left. He was turning into one of those hopeless fools that he had constantly mocked. Certainly, he could disguise his thoughts behind his usual unpleasant demeanor, but would that really solve any of his problems? He didn't have a clue what to do about it. 

Severus scowled at Hermione Granger, who was concentrating fully on the potion. She seemed completely oblivious to his gaze, which rested on her. "Miss Granger, you're very quiet tonight," he finally said.

"Some people would say that silence is more eloquent than speech," she said calmly. He gaped at her peculiar behavior for a few seconds, then left to get some of his supplies. 

They had been working for a little over an hour—speaking only a minimal amount—when the door opened. He cringed when he saw Fleur Delacour.

"Severus?" she asked. "Do you think that—?" Suddenly her eyes fell on Hermione. "What is _she_ doing here?"

"Miss Granger is _obviously_ helping me with a potion," he replied sardonically. Both he and Granger were hunched over cauldrons; what else would they be doing?

  "I can leave you two alone, if you'd like. The potion needs to sit for the rest of the night anyway," Hermione Granger said snappishly and got up to leave. "_Accio books," she murmured with a swift flick of her wand._

Severus grabbed her arm before she could go. Surprised, she stopped, nearly dropping the heavy volumes in her hands. "I didn't dismiss you yet, Miss Granger," he said in a low, silky voice. Then he spoke in his normal, sarcastic tone. "Miss Delacour, as you know, we all have specific office hours dedicated to answering the questions of students—or other professors. If you have a problem, I would advise you to present it to me at that time, rather than intruding on my personal time." 

Fleur Delacour gave him a look of shock. She looked upset. Perhaps he was being a bit harsh on her, but maybe this time she would get the point. Delacour quickly turned and rushed out of the room, slamming the door behind her. 

Granger glanced up at him, confusion apparent on her face. Severus nearly melted under her wide-eyed gaze, but kept his eyes locked onto hers. An uncontrollable feeling of longing came over him. It was an elevated version of the emotion that had been eating away at him for the past three months. Severus could feel his heart pounding, and his face growing warm by the simple glance of Hermione Granger. He looked at her with hunger in his eyes.

Seemingly, she saw his expression also. She looked downward, hugging her books to her chest. Severus realized that he was still holding her arm, and released it. She stepped back and, regaining her composure, sneered at him. "Lover's quarrel, Professor Snape?" she asked him innocently as she set her books down on the table and began leafing through one of them.

He laughed aloud, which she responded to by turning towards him with a vicious glare. "I'm sorry, sir, but I fail to see the humor." 

Her comment only amused him more. Seeing her irate about his nonexistent relationship with Fleur Delacour gave him an enormous feeling of pleasure. However, she seemed enraged enough at the moment to hex him into oblivion, so he stopped laughing. "Miss Granger, you have the highest marks out of any student I have ever encountered, but you are the most thickheaded young woman in this entire school!"

She seemed even angrier at this remark. At that point, Severus realized that he was getting absolutely nowhere. Rather than eloquently confessing his feelings, his words were only insulting her. Hermione looked ready to slap him. If only he was one of those men who knew exactly what to say to women! But, his inexperience made him the exact opposite. 

He stepped closer to her, taking her hand into his own. "Hermione, I—"

She looked up at him, the expression on her face softening at his touch, and his use of her name. He was suddenly speechless once again. His brain began going over the possible things for him to say, all of which seemed insufficient.

_Hermione, I am finding myself disliking you less now that I know you better._ No, that wouldn't work.

_Hermione, I don't despise your presence as much as I originally thought I would. _That was pretty bad too.

_Hermione, I can't keep my eyes off you. You are absolutely exquisite. Your beauty would make Aphrodite herself jealous. Your eyes are deeper than the ocean. Your hair is more beautiful than the sunset. Your lips are lovelier than the most delicate rose. _Ugh! It was absolutely horrid, like something out of a badly-written romance novel. _Not that he would ever read anything of the sort._

_Hermione, I think you're an annoying, bossy know-it-all, but for some odd reason, I'm finding myself attracted to you._ Absolutely not! Why was this so hard?

He couldn't put his feelings into words. He had always considered himself as being of above average intelligence and knew that he was thought to be the greatest Potions Master in Britain and one of the best in the world. Yet he couldn't do something as simple as expressing his thoughts. So he did the only thing that he could possibly think of. He kissed her.

Hermione stiffened and stood in amazement for several seconds, but then relaxed, putting her arms around his neck. Severus pulled her closer and shut his eyes, deepening the kiss. The kisses that he had participated in were few and far between (in fact, the last one had been over ten years earlier), but this was sweeter and more satisfying than all of those put together. 

"Pr…Professor..." Hermione said breathlessly.

"Severus," he said with a goofy grin on his face, which he was certain looked ridiculous on him.

She smiled back, a warm look in her eyes. "Severus." Lord, how he loved the sound of her voice speaking his name.

Then she put her hands in his hair and pressed her lips to his. Severus was absolutely astonished. He would have never imagined himself kissing Hermione Granger…and enjoying it more than anything he had ever experienced. Based on her reaction, she seemed to feel the same way. 

They continued in that manner for several blissful minutes longer. Then he pulled away, gazing intently at her, his fingers stroking her cheek. "You're so beautiful," he whispered to her.

She blushed adorably. "I seem to remember you telling me the contrary a few months ago," she teased. Severus almost groaned aloud. He couldn't believe that she actually remembered something like that! However, he was saved from replying when she brought her mouth to his once more. 

Finally, she broke away from the kiss. "I should go to sleep," she told him shyly. "Goodnight… Severus." She gave him a quick peck on the lips, then left the room.  

He stared after her for several minutes, an idiotic smile on his face. Then the gravity of what he had just done hit him. _He had kissed a student. As wonderful as it had been, it was still completely wrong. He had allowed his feelings to go out of control, and had overstepped an invisible boundary. He had taken advantage of a schoolgirl crush to feed his own desires. Well… not exactly. It seemed as though it had been more than that for both of them. He was falling in love with her. He dared not hope that she felt the same way, but all of his instincts were telling him that she did. Despite that, he had completely ignored all of his morals. The worst part about it was that he didn't even care. It had been worth it. Even though his conscience was telling him that kissing Hermione was just a mistake that couldn't happen again, he knew that he wouldn't pay attention to it. His principles no longer mattered to him. Only Hermione did. _


	11. Chapter 11

**Escape From the Darkness: Chapter 11**

Hermione walked from the dungeons, a smile on her face. Professor Snape—no, Severus—had just kissed her. Several times. "Wow…" she whispered aloud. It had been absolutely amazing. She had only been kissed a few times, all by Viktor Krum. But those had lacked the passion that she shared with Severus.  
Hermione reached her room. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and realized that she was still grinning. There was also a light in her face that hadn't been there earlier in the day. She wondered if anybody else would be aware of the difference, or if it was something that only she would notice. It would probably be better if nobody could tell that she was in love. As wonderful as she felt, this was something that she had to keep secret. Otherwise… well, she could be expelled or Severus could lose his job. It would be a nightmare for both of them. Now that she realized that he felt the same way as she, Hermione didn't want to be apart from him. Even now as she sat alone in her room, he was all that she could think about.

Hermione sighed. Should she tell Harry? He was one of her best friends. She had confessed her feelings about Snape to him, after all. However, for now she would settle for pouring her heart out to Crookshanks. Harry had seemed depressed about Ron and she didn't want to rub what she had with Severus in his face. 

What exactly was her relationship with Severus? Hermione wondered about this. They had kissed each other, but what if it meant something different to him than it had to her? The thought nearly sent her into a fit of panic.

She calmed down when she remembered the fiery look in his eyes when he told her that she was beautiful. The only time anybody had ever said that was after she spent several hours performing glamour charms. Hermione had never thought that anyone would consider her attractive without the help of magic. But Severus had been sincere, and that meant a lot to her. 

She smiled when she thought of the moment she realized that Severus was interested in her. Only her.  She had been stupid in believing that Fleur Delacour was his girlfriend. Of course, Severus hadn't exactly helped her to dispel that thought. Despite the fact that he treated Delacour with the same sarcastic rudeness as he did to everyone, he hadn't denied their relationship. And it made sense—it was in his nature to take pleasure in making other people squirm. Even Hermione. 

She rolled her eyes. She was in love with him, and had begun to accept every single part of him. Including the sarcastic and masochistic part. His shortcomings no longer seemed like negative qualities. _I really have it bad, she thought. Although she was somewhat worried about whether or not his feelings matched hers, her intuition told her that they did. In the moments they had spent together in the dungeons after his kiss, everything had suddenly begun to make sense. _

Hermione wasn't certain how long she had actually been in love with him. It had all come on so gradually that there didn't seem to be any exact time. She had begun to realize it throughout the summer, but hadn't wanted to admit it to herself until now. However, her feelings had changed so much over the past few years. She had disliked Professor Snape up until her fifth year. At that point, she had started to respect him, and even began to enjoy his class—despite his constant criticism. Potions was the only one of her courses that challenged her, and Severus had always been the only teacher who was stern with her. But that had pushed her to work harder, causing her to learn more than she would have ever imagined. Her respect had grown to admiration, which in turn grew to love. 

The next day was a Saturday, so Hermione allowed herself the leisure of sleeping in. She awoke with a smile on her face. All of her dreams had been happy, which was a rare occurrence ever since the return of Voldemort at the end of her fourth year. She was still lying in bed, reflecting on one of her more pleasant dreams, when there was a tapping at the window. She opened it and was greeted by one of the school owls with a small note for her. A silly grin formed on her face when she read it. She scribbled a reply and gave it to the owl. She was now meeting Severus in his quarters for lunch. In fact, she had stayed in bed so long that it was nearing lunchtime now. Hermione bathed and dressed quickly. She spent a few minutes longer than usual on her hair and put on a skirt, rather than the jeans that she usually wore on non-schooldays.   

She cautiously walked down to the dungeons, not wanting to be forced to explain to anybody why she was there. Of course, she could always say that she was working on the potion with Severus. But she was dressed awfully nice for potion brewing. Luckily, she arrived after being seen by only a few people, none of whom had questioned her about her destination.

Hermione knocked on the door, and entered wordlessly after Severus opened it. Only after the door had closed behind them did he greet her. "Good afternoon, Hermione," he said, kissing her softly on the lips. She blushed quickly, realizing that she would have to get used to him kissing her. Not that she minded at all.

"Good afternoon, Severus." He led her to a small table that had been set up in his sitting room. "Wow! It looks wonderful," Hermione said with a smile as she looked at the feast that had been set up. "Where did all this food come from?"

"I have a few house-elf friends," he told her.

She raised an eyebrow. He didn't seem like the type to be making friends out of those creatures, but they _were house-elves, after all. They liked people who ordered them around. Hermione frowned. After all of her efforts with S.P.E.W. and they still enjoyed being mistreated... As they ate, she began telling Severus about it, and how it had failed miserably with all except for Dobby._

 "Sometimes it feels so hopeless, Severus. They're born into servitude. They're actually happy to be slaves because it's the only life they know! I keep trying to make them see that they can live differently, and that there's a better life available, but it doesn't work!" Hermione failed to hide how upset she was. _Great, she thought, __now Severus probably thinks that I'm a foolishly idealistic girl and that my attempts have all been in vain.  _

Instead of saying something of the sort, he took her hand in his. "Hermione, maybe I can try to help you. With S.P.E.W., I mean."

To say that she was shocked would have been an understatement. "You would do that?" She smiled, her mood suddenly brightening. "You, Severus Snape, the Potions Master who wouldn't give a word of encouragement if his life depended on it?"

"You know it's not in my nature to give support to students who don't deserve it," he told her with a sneer.

She rolled her eyes. "That ridiculous smirk no longer intimidates me, so you can just drop the charade when I'm with you." The expression on his face was a mix of confusion and horror, which caused Hermione to burst into laughter. She thought that he was going to give her another sneer, but he relaxed and gave her a smile instead. Her heart pounded. She loved the way that he looked with a smile on his face. This was mainly because it was such a rare occurrence. She blushed again when she realized that he was going to kiss her once more. 

Hermione put her hands around his neck as he brought his lips to hers. It felt so nice… 

They deepened the kiss, both of them oblivious to anything else, until…until someone gasped. Someone who was NOT Hermione or Severus. Hermione felt her heart sinking. It felt as though all of her worst nightmares were coming true. 

***************

"I'm so sorry!" a voice said as Severus pulled away from Hermione. Selene. She wouldn't tell anybody. Would she? 

"Selene!" Hermione cried after her. Selene froze and turned around.

"I guess you should come in so that we can explain," Severus said. He suddenly felt scared, a strange feeling for a former Death Eater. She was a careless twelve-year-old girl… what if she let something slip? He would lose his job, Hermione would be expelled, and the relationship that he had wanted for so long would come to an abrupt end. 

Selene walked over to the couple. "What is there to explain?" she asked. "I've known about the two of you for a long time. This just confirmed my suspicions."

"You silly little girl!" Severus regarded her with peculiar amusement. "You've known about this for a long time? Despite the fact that it didn't begin until last night?" 

Selene shrugged. "Well, I can't remember you ever having a girlfriend, and you always treat Hermione different than everyone else."  She paused for a few seconds. "I'm happy that you found somebody, Uncle Severus. And Hermione's the smartest and nicest girl I know, too." She gave Hermione a shy smile. Severus smirked. Selene had been hero-worshipping Hermione for months, which had always made him laugh. Just what he needed was his niece acting like a bossy know-it-all. Not that he didn't like the bossy know-it-all—he was no longer annoyed by it; instead he found it somewhat charming. Not that he would ever tell Hermione that. But having the two most important females in his life acting like that would be too much.

"You know that if you tell anybody about this, both Hermione and I will face the most dire of consequences. Both of our lives will be ruined!" He gave her a look that was usually reserved for the likes of Neville Longbottom. Selene nodded, a scared look on her face. Severus took pleasure in knowing that he was still able to intimidate his closest relation.

"Severus," Hermione said sharply. "Selene's _won't tell." Her voice went back to its normal tone and her face softened as she looked at Selene. "I trust her not to reveal something so important to anybody else." _

Selene was practically jumping up and down in jubilation when Hermione said this. "Of course I won't say anything! You can count on me, Hermione!"

Severus just looked away, frowning. He had been hoping to use a minor obliviate spell on the girl. He didn't want to involve his niece in this. She would be forced to lie, or at least to keep parts of the truth from others. Severus hadn't wanted to get her involved. But now she was, whether he liked it or not. He grumbled in response, which earned him a glare from Hermione. "All right…" he finally said. 

After they said their goodbyes to Selene, Severus turned towards Hermione. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea after all," he mumbled, even though he didn't believe it. A look of horror and sadness crossed her face. He lifted his voice slightly. "Now I have Selene lying for us. This isn't something we will be able to tell anyone about." He closed his eyes. "And you're still a student. I'm twenty years older than you, Hermione. Twenty years! Can you really picture yourself with an old man like me after you finish at Hogwarts?"

He could see tears and a hurt look forming in her eyes. "How can you say such a thing, Severus? I can't picture myself _without you!" She turned, beginning to walk away. _

"Wait, Hermione," he said grabbing her hand. She stopped, but didn't turn around. He could see that her face was becoming wet with tears. She wouldn't look at him and Severus felt an absolute sense of despair. He hated himself for hurting her, for making her cry. What a selfish bastard he was! "Please, don't leave… This is so hard for me. I've never been in love with anybody, and now… with you…a student, of all people." He cursed himself for sounding like an inarticulate fool. He always knew how to speak so eloquently about potions, but was completely at a loss when it came to love. He only managed to sound like a sniveling idiot. __

He dropped her hand and she turned to look at him again. "I'm in love with you too, Severus," she told him in a shaky whisper. He ran his fingers across her cheeks, wiping her tears away. Then he kissed her forehead. 

"Hermione, we have to be careful. If anybody else finds out about this…" She nodded. It was an unspoken agreement that they were to be discreet. Severus spent the remainder of the afternoon sitting on the sofa while Hermione rested her head on his shoulder. His arm pulled her close to him, his hand mindlessly stroking her hair. They didn't speak. It wasn't necessary; both of them would have been perfectly content to remain in that position forever.

"Thirty seconds until we add in the last of the wormwood mixture, Hermione!" She gave him a questioning glance and he nodded. It was the final step in brewing the Life Draining Draught, and the unselfish part of him which had begun to emerge in the past two months took over. He was actually allowing another person to have the privilege of completing one of the most powerful potions he had ever brewed. Not that Hermione was just anybody. The time since the day they had been discovered by Selene had completely flown by. They had pursued a relationship with the utmost secrecy. He had always been a private person, so none of the other teachers had suspected anything was amiss. Hermione had been a different story. Severus had been furious when she told him that she had revealed her feelings to Potter. Finally, after she assured him that Potter didn't know anything else, he had stopped arguing with her about it. 

He watched Hermione carefully beginning to pour the wormwood infusion into the rest of the potion. She gave him a triumphant look when she finished. Severus actually smiled, which he had been doing a lot lately. It was a completely foreign feeling. At times he looked in the mirror, asking himself, 'who are you and what have you done with Severus Snape?' He was, for the first time in his life, happy. 

"That's it," he told Hermione, then pulled her into his arms. The two of them had worked relentlessly for three months. And now they were done. Severus hoped that all of their hard work would pay off, and that the potion would do its job in aiding in the Dark Lord's defeat. It was strange; they rarely spoke about Voldemort, despite the fact that they had been brewing a potion for him. Perhaps it was because they both knew that Severus could be summoned at any time… and there was always a chance that he wouldn't return when that happened. The knowledge of that made the moments they spent together even more precious. Who knew if Severus would live to see another year, or even another day?

The two of them spent the rest of the night talking—mostly about their potion—until Severus noticed that Hermione's speech was laced with yawns. He looked at his wristwatch. It was after midnight already!

"Hermione, I'm going to walk you back to your dorm. I don't want you getting into trouble with Filch for being out after curfew." She nodded. Most of the students were home for the Christmas holidays, so there was really no chance of any of them seeing Hermione with him. As they walked through the corridors, Severus unthinkingly held Hermione's hand. When they were about halfway to her room, he realized that if they did run into Filch, it would look strange for him to be holding the hand of a student. He reluctantly released it. 

They reached the Head Girl's room. It was not inside the Gryffindor dormitories, although it seemed closer to Gryffindor any of the other Houses. "Goodnight, Severus," Hermione said, looking up at him expectantly. 

He smiled at her. "Goodnight, Hermione." He kissed her quickly on the lips, and then pulled away, ready to leave. However, she laughingly pulled his face back to hers, grabbing him in a passionate embrace. Severus kissed her back eagerly and deeply. They finally moved apart, smiling at each other. "Goodnight," he whispered again, then turned around, a smile on his face, his entire body filled with warmth. 

He was utterly shocked to find himself face to face with an irate Minerva McGonagall. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Escape From the Darkness: Chapter 12**

Hermione walked through door, a dreamy smile on her face. Just as she was about to close the door, she heard Severus's voice behind her. 

"Minerva."

Hermione froze, holding her breath, her heart stopping. Her entire body felt numb, but she somehow managed to turn around. Her Transfiguration professor was staring at Severus. And she did not look happy. _No no no no! If she hadn't been so shaken, Hermione would have begun screaming, a very un-Hermione thing to do. All of her dreams were falling apart. She knew that McGonagall wouldn't be accepting like Selene had been. And that would be the end of them. She would be expelled, Severus would be fired, and both of them would have nothing left in their lives. _

McGonagall finally spoke, rage apparent in her voice. "Severus, out of all the students to take advantage of, you had to choose Hermione Granger, the Head Girl, one of the greatest students Gryffindor House has ever seen?"

Hermione interrupted her, her voice shaking. "He didn't take advantage of me. I was completely willing to start a relationship with Severus. I'm in love with him."

Whatever effect her confession had on McGonagall, it definitely didn't decrease her anger. In fact, it caused another expression to be added to her face. Disappointment. Hermione was heartbroken. Professor McGonagall had always been important to her. In her first year, Professor McGonagall was the one she had always turned to when she had felt homesick, when she had been ostracized by the other students. Professor McGonagall had been like a second mother to her. Hermione had always respected her most out of all of her teachers. Because of that, the way that Minerva McGonagall was looking at her hurt more than any possible punishment could have. 

"I must say, I'm stunned. Both of you should be ashamed at your behavior!" She sighed and her voice softened. "I do not know how to handle this situation. Only the Headmaster can determine that."

She turned around, and Hermione and Severus followed her. The entire walk to Dumbledore's office felt like a dream… a very bad one. Hermione vaguely noticed Severus grabbing her hand for a brief moment, giving it a reassuring squeeze, then releasing it. He looked as nervous as she felt. And when Severus Snape was uneasy about something, it had to be bad. 

All three of them remained silent until they reached the Headmaster's office. Hermione felt dizzy as Professor McGonagall explained what she had stumbled upon. She wanted to defend herself and Severus… but what would she say? They had broken so many rules, and McGonagall seemed convinced that Severus had taken advantage of her. After McGonagall was finished, all of them looked at the Headmaster expectantly.

He paused for a few seconds. That short moment of silence felt like a thousand years to Hermione. She struggled to control her emotions, feeling like she would burst into tears, screams, or both if she didn't.

Dumbledore gave them all a defeated look. "I have never encountered a case such as this in all of my years as Headmaster of this school. I truly do not know the best way to solve this problem. I want this relationship ended immediately." Hermione stared downward. Everything that they had worked towards over the past few months was now crumbling. She had hoped that people would be accepting, but very few were.

"Although this should cost you your job, Severus, all of my better judgment suggests otherwise." Hermione let out the breath that she had been holding. At least he wouldn't be fired; that was the most important thing. "With the state of the wizarding world at the moment, sending either of you away from Hogwarts would put you in grave danger. However…" He became maddeningly quiet for a few instants. Hermione wanted to scream at him to just tell them his decision. 

"However, both of you have broken my trust, something which is not earned easily. If the two of you remain in Hogwarts Castle, I have no guarantee that you will discontinue seeing each other. In fact, my instincts tell me that you will not break it off. I feel like I have only one choice. Hermione, you will transfer to Beauxbatons straight away." Hermione nodded mindlessly. She didn't know whether to be happy or not. She would be away from all of her friends, from Severus, everything important to her. However, she knew that the Headmaster was making allowances for them. Their punishment could be _so much worse. _

However, it was still bad for her, and she felt ready to begin crying any second. Instead, she held back her tears and spoke weakly, her voice nearly a whisper. "Thank you, Headmaster Dumbledore, for letting me continue my education and for allowing Severus to keep his job." She knew that her attempts to sound grateful were pathetic. She was sad and angry. But, getting mad at Dumbledore wouldn't help anything; he had been fairer than Hermione would have hoped for. The main thing that she was upset about was the circumstances. Why couldn't they just have a normal, happy relationship? 

"It seems that neither of you understand the seriousness of this situation," Dumbledore continued. "Severus, you are masquerading as a Death Eater and Hermione is a Muggle-born witch. If word got out that you were seeing each other, Voldemort would become aware of your duplicity. He would have no qualms about killing either of you." The words hung in the air. How could they have been so careless? Sure, this time only Professor McGonagall had caught them. But what if Malfoy, or one of the other students with a Death Eater parent had seen them?

"I'm not going to apologize for starting something with Hermione," Severus told the Headmaster angrily. The look on his face was the same one that he used to scare first-year students. However, Dumbledore didn't flinch. "She's the first person in my life who actually means something to me. My only regret is that we were not more discreet."

Professor McGonagall was fuming. "Severus, how can you say such a thing? Don't you care at all—" She was silenced as Dumbledore held up his hand.

"Now, Minerva, I'm sure you remember what it was like to be in love." 

Her face became pallid as she looked away. "That was an unsuitable match, in the same way that this is."

Hermione's eyes widened. Had her Transfigurations professor actually had a boyfriend before?

"How are we unsuitable for each other?" Severus snapped at McGonagall. "If this had happened a year later, after Hermione finished school, would it have been any different? I don't think that it would have; you would still be attempting to find some way to stop it."

"Severus," Hermione interrupted. This had to stop. He and McGonagall were glaring hatefully at each other. Hermione wouldn't have been surprised if the two of them pulled out their wands and began dueling. "Severus, I'll go. To Beauxbatons, I mean." Her voice was trembling. "I agree with Headmaster Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall. It will be better this way. I'll pack my things to leave for France immediately," she told the Headmaster. She tried to smile convincingly, but it was impossible. If she stayed a moment longer, she would begin whimpering like a baby. Without another word, Hermione turned on her heel and left the office, three surprised faces staring after her. 

She was grateful that the tears didn't begin falling down her cheeks until she was in the corridor, for she had been trying to act like a true Gryffindor, keeping a brave face in front of Severus. The halls were completely empty, since it was not only after curfew, but also the Christmas holidays. Thank goodness for that. Hermione would not have wanted to have been forced to explain her condition to anybody. She didn't even know what she was doing. It was the right thing to do, of course, but it hurt so much. This would probably be the biggest mistake of her life, but what else could she do?

Hermione began furiously muttering spells to put all of her possessions into her trunk. Never in her life had she packed so rapidly for anything. She had to leave Hogwarts as soon as possible. Otherwise she wouldn't be able to do it. 

Less than an hour had passed before the entire Head Girl's room looked exactly the same way it had before the beginning of the term. Hermione swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She had worked diligently for six years to get that room… and now she was giving it up so willingly. 

"Come on, Crookshanks," she said to her cat, trying to coax him to come with her. He remained planted on her bed, refusing to leave. She didn't blame him. This room _had been his home for the past four months. "Please, Crookshanks," she pleaded, but with no success. Hermione sighed, and tried to grab him. He jumped out of her reach, hissing at her. For some reason, this caused her to begin sobbing. After a few minutes, she felt like she could pull herself together. She shrunk her belongings so that she could easily handle them. Crookshanks obediently trotted next to her, having decided not to resist and possibly make her cry again. She gave the room one last glance, then shut the door behind her._

"Hermione," a voice said urgently from the shadows. All of the emotions she had been attempting to control flooded over her once again.

"S... Severus?" She looked into the insistent pair of black eyes.

"Please, don't leave. I can try to persuade Albus to—"

 Hermione turned her head away. It was easier for her if she didn't have to look at his face. "You know I have to. Severus, it's the only solution." After a few seconds, she allowed herself to look at him again. The gloomy expression in her eyes increased the ache in her chest. She wanted to give him some sort of promise, something to look forward to. Hermione wanted to tell him that the moment she finished her schooling, they could be together again. But she couldn't do that. At least not while Voldemort was still alive. Dumbledore had been exactly right when he said that both of them would be in danger if Voldemort found out about them. 

Hermione hated the way he was gazing at her. She hated Minerva McGonagall for finding out about them and she hated Albus Dumbledore for not bending the rules further than he already had. And she hated herself for allowing them to be forced into this position. "I'm sorry, Severus." 

She began to walk away when Severus grabbed her arm. "I love you, Hermione," he told her.

She shut her eyes to squeeze away the tears that were forming. "I love you too, Severus," she told him in a hoarse voice. Before she could open her eyes, his lips were on over hers. Hermione kissed him back eagerly, savoring the moment. She didn't know if she would ever be able to kiss him again. Eventually, Hermione forced herself to pull away, feeling heartbroken. "I need to leave," she told him. Without another glance at him, she walked to the Headmaster's office.

Dumbledore quickly explained to her a few of the differences between the curriculums at Hogwarts and Beauxbatons. Hermione couldn't contain her nervousness. She had only learned a small amount of French, back when she was a child in a Muggle school. That would make the transition difficult for her. And she couldn't even begin to imagine what it would be like to be away from Severus… No, she wouldn't think about that.

The Headmaster finished. "Madame Maxime is expecting you, Miss Granger." He gave her a handful of Floo Powder, gesturing towards the fireplace. 

As she walked towards the fireplace, Hermione grabbed Crookshanks, happy to have someone to hold onto. She held him close with her free arm, and used the other hand to throw the powder. "Beauxbatons!"

*************

_Dear Harry,_

_I suppose that you're wondering where I've been for the past few days. It's not easy to explain, but I'll tell you this: I'm now a student at Beauxbatons. I cannot tell you all of the details as to why I have to transfer, but you might be able to guess. I miss you and Ron quite a bit. Although most of the people here are not as snobbish as Fleur Delacour (luckily), it is nothing compared to Hogwarts. I miss all of the friendly faces and the fun classes. Even though I've only been to Beauxbatons classes for a few days, I can already tell that the teachers here are not nearly as interesting as those at Hogwarts. Speaking of classes, I have a Transfiguration essay due in a few days that I have to finish. We're learning about Conjuring spells. Of course, I already know how to do it, but it's still fun to learn it in a classroom setting. However, my teacher isn't nearly as good as McGonagall. I miss you and will write more to you soon!_

_Love, Hermione_

Harry was staring at the letter long after the owl had left. It was certainly short, but he had already read through it enough to memorize it (well, except for the Transfiguration stuff). He didn't know what to make of it. Why had Hermione left so abruptly? He had his suspicions, and all of them had to do with Snape. She had told him months earlier that she was in love with Snape. Every time he didn't know where Hermione was he had consulted the Marauder's Map. And each time, she had always been in the same place. The dungeons. Hermione hadn't told him anything about what was going on with her. He knew that she was working on some sort of potion, but that was it. Over the past few months, he had scarcely seen her at all. 

Angrily, Harry stormed downstairs to Snape's office, where the Map had shown him. He pounded on the door for several moments before his Potions professor finally opened it. Harry immediately began bombarding him with questions. "What did you do to Hermione? Why did she have to leave?"

 He cringed at the malicious look on Snape's face. "How nice to see you too, Potter," he began sarcastically.

"What did you do to Hermione?" Harry asked again.

Snape sneered at him. "I did absolutely nothing to her. It was the decision of Headmaster Dumbledore and her to leave."

Harry frowned. "I know what was going on between the two of you." He really didn't, but Snape didn't have to know that. Something flashed instantly in Snape's eyes which confirmed that _something had happened with Hermione._

Within a second, Snape's expression was back to normal. "And what exactly do you _know happened between Miss Granger and me?" Harry remained silent. "That's what I thought, Mr. Potter. Now if you'll excuse me, I do not need you wasting more of my time than you already have." With that, he slammed the door in Harry's face._

Harry was seething. He hated Snape so much! He quickly went up to Dumbledore's office, nearly running into Professor McGonagall, who was stepping out of it. "Mr. Potter, what is the matter?" 

"Professor, I need to see the headmaster immediately!"

"What is this about?" Minerva McGonagall asked him.

Harry went on to tell her about his letter from Hermione, and his fears that Snape had hurt her in some way or another.

A sad look formed on McGonagall's face. "Do not worry, Mr. Potter, Severus would never harm a student, especially one as brilliant as Miss Granger. Her reason for leaving was something else completely." Harry gave her a skeptical look. "I cannot tell you more, nor can the Headmaster. Now, Mr. Potter, it is after curfew, so I will have to take ten points away from you. I expect you to return to the Gryffindor common room immediately."

Harry nodded solemnly and walked back to Gryffindor Tower. He wanted to know more, but at least he had established that Snape hadn't done anything bad to Hermione. 

When he got back to the common room, Ron was the only person there. "Harry, what's going on?" he asked. "Seamus told me that you just ran out of here without telling anybody where you were going."

He filled Ron in on the letter from Hermione, but left out the part about Snape. Ron didn't need to know about that. He had Hermione were not back to what they had before Ron's confession, but they had been slowly trying to mend their friendship. Harry presumed that they would have been back to normal if Hermione had spent more time with the two of them than she had with Professor Snape. "What do you suppose her reason for leaving is, Harry?" Ron asked him curiously. Harry just shook his head without meeting Ron's eyes. "I'm worried about her," Ron told him. "She has barely been around over the past few months and now she's suddenly in France?!"

They both stared at the fire for a few minutes before Harry asked the question that had been plaguing him for the last few months "Are you still in love with her, Ron?"

Ron didn't respond for a moment, instead kept gazing at the fireplace. He finally turned to look at Harry. "No, Harry. I never was."

Harry stared at him dumbfounded, as Ron went on. "She's the only girl that I've been good friends with. Of course I love her, the same way I love my sister. But for all these years I've been mistaking that for something more. It's what everyone expects. My parents, my siblings, everybody in Gryffindor. All of them think that Hermione and I will be married at some point. So many people thought that way that I had begun to believe it myself."

Harry stared at him in astonishment. He didn't know whether to be happy or confused. Of course, what if Ron fell in love with somebody else, somebody less worthy of him than Hermione? "So all this time… you haven't been in love at all?"

"Not with Hermione," Ron said plainly, staring straight at him. The feeling was so unnerving that Harry had to look away, his face growing warm.

"You say that as if you're been in love with somebody else… Are you?" Harry asked, not wanting to hear the answer.

"So many questions, Harry!" Ron joked. Harry wanted to scream at him to just answer it already. Ron didn't. "Sorry, Harry, I'll answer that one later." Harry just glared at him. "Now I have one for you. Will you go with me to Hogsmeade this weekend?"

"We always go together to Hogsmeade," Harry said crossly. He was still annoyed that Ron was being so secretive. "Of course I'll—" 

"No, Harry," Ron said, interrupting him. "Will _you_ go with _me to Hogsmeade this weekend?"_

Suddenly it dawned on him what Ron was getting at. Harry was absolutely shocked. Was Ron asking him out on… a date? Harry looked into Ron's eyes once again, realizing that it was indeed what he was asking.

His face turned crimson and it was a few seconds before he could finally sputter out a response. "Yes, Ron, I would love to go with you."

***********

Severus tried to shut out the pain—both physical and otherwise—that seared through him when his Dark Mark turned black. The last week had been absolute hell… and now it was going to get much worse. He had scarcely left the dungeons, and didn't want to now. Sure, he would suffer the Dark Lord's wrath for now showing up, but he wished he could just stay in his sanctuary. The only thing that forced him to get ready to go was the knowledge that the potion he had made with Hermione could defeat Voldemort. 

He quickly grabbed a handful of Floo Powder. "Headmaster's Office!"

"Severus?" Albus seemed surprised to see his Potions professor's head appearing in his fireplace at such a late hour. 

"Albus, I've been summoned." Severus paused and sighed. "I'm going to administer the potion to him tonight. If I don't return, well, that probably means that I've been caught. If I die, I want you and the Order of the Phoenix to use the potion against Voldemort. Hermione knows where I keep it. It's the only thing that we have which can potentially defeat the Dark Lord. Other than a bratty seventeen-year-old boy, of course," Severus added snidely. It comforted him somewhat that even while his life was in danger, he could still manage to make sarcastic remarks about Potter. Severus nearly cracked a smile. Albus, on the other hand, looked more serious than usual.

"Please, Severus, be careful," the headmaster told him worriedly. "Good luck." With that, Severus, was back in his own room.

A sharp pain shot through his arm once again, reminding him that he had better hurry up. He grabbed his robes and mask, then quickly filled up a vial of the Life-Draining Draught. With one last look at his laboratory, and the hope that he would see it again, Severus left.

Tonight's meeting place was an old house, which probably hadn't been lived in for the past fifty years. Severus didn't know where Voldemort went in between meetings; even though he considered himself aware of all of the Death Eaters' feelings towards him, Voldemort was still extremely paranoid and didn't stay in one place for long. He had a right to be worried. If only he knew that there was one whose Occlumency skills were greater than his own in Legilimency. Of course, Severus thought, tonight may be the time he finds out.

"Severus, how nice of you to join us," the Dark Lord said. 

"I apologize, my lord. I think that the old fool might suspect something is amiss." Voldemort frowned at the mention of Dumbledore, which almost made Severus smirk.

"Well, we just began. As I was telling the others who got here _on time_, tonight we will be plotting our next move. I know that some of you are disappointed that we aren't having any fun tonight, but we need to have some sort of strategy. We _are_ Slytherins, after all. Well, most of us." He sneered in the direction of a Death Eater who Severus assumed was Peter Pettigrew. 

Severus listened carefully as the Dark Lord outlined the plan. It was designed to help the remaining Death Eaters break out of Azkaban Prison. It was a relief that it wasn't another attack, but Severus knew that the breakout would probably be followed by one. Throughout the entire time Voldemort was speaking, Severus tried to ignore his anxiety about the potion. He knew what he had to do, and that it had to be done quickly. The vial in his pocket already had a Disillusionment Charm cast on it—all he had to do was somehow get the potion into the water goblet on the table to the right of Lord Voldemort without anybody noticing it, and without allowing Voldemort to read his mind. If let his guard down just for a moment, Voldemort would know. That was the way it always was at these meetings; the moment the Dark Lord detected any doubts among his followers, he used the Cruciatus Curse. And occasionally Imperius if Cruciatus didn't change their minds.

Damn. This was going to be close to impossible. All that could save him were his Occlumency skills and a simple Disillusionment spell. This had to be one of the most horrible strategies he had ever devised, but it was the only thing he could fabricate in the short time since he had entered the room.

He found a breach when Voldemort snapped his fingers, a diagram of Azkaban appearing on the wall to his left side. All of the Death Eaters directed their gazes towards that wall. And away from the glass. Making certain to keep his eyes focused on the picture of Azkaban, and his thoughts closed off completely, Severus put one hand around his wand, and the other around the tube that held the potion. It took less than fifteen seconds for him to guide the potion over to the water goblet, and successfully get the emptied vial back into his pocket. During that entire time, Voldemort hadn't glanced at him once. Severus hid his jubilation at both that time and a few minutes later when Voldemort gulped the last of the contents of the glass down. The effects would come on so gradually that he would never know who or what had caused his state. The potion wouldn't kill him, but it would certainly make him easier to take away his life.

It wasn't until Severus got back to his rooms that he allowed himself to smile for the first time since the day that Hermione left. Hermione. He wanted to contact her somehow, to tell her that he had given the potion to the Dark Lord. But he knew that he couldn't; sending anything by owl was unsafe, and using the Floo Network to go to France would arouse suspicion. As much as he hated it, he had to distance himself from her, for her own safety. If only the thought of that didn't make him feel so empty inside.


	13. Chapter 13

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 13**

Hermione closed her eyes, collapsing on her bed. Luckily, all Beauxbatons students had their own rooms. It had been a trying day, not because her classes were difficult (they weren't, once she got past the language barrier, which she had already learned to deal with), but because they were not at Hogwarts. The only thing that she was grateful for was that the year would soon be over. She had friends here, but it wasn't the same as back at Hogwarts.

None of her friends here even came close to comparing with Harry and Ron. The smartest people in her year were also the snobbiest. And none of the people who were friendly to her had ever had an intelligent conversation with her. 

Hermione frowned. Now _she_ was the one being stuck-up. It wasn't as though she had deep and thought-provoking discussions with Harry and Ron. But she missed them so much. None of her friends here would ever have that effect on her.

Everything about Beauxbatons made her yearn for Hogwarts. Not just the students, but everything. The teachers. The building. The weather. And most of all, the classes. 

Every time she had Potions, she thought of Severus. From the moment she walked into the classroom, the aroma of the ginger, belladonna, and all of the other ingredients brought him to mind. She would go to her seat, waiting for him, daydreaming of him. But he never came, and she realized that her stupid fantasies were just that—fantasy.

Hermione kept imagining how it felt to be held in his arms, listening to his heartbeat as she lay against his chest… but then she would wake up and remember where she was. She was a so far away from him. Would they ever see each other again? They probably would, but they would be forced to act as if nothing had ever occurred between them.

The two of them were in more danger from Voldemort than nearly everybody else in the wizarding world. If he was found out as a spy, Voldemort would surely be out for blood. As for Hermione, not only was she a Muggle-born witch, but she was also the best friend of Harry Potter. Everything about her was a strike against her in the eyes of the Dark Lord. 

She was uncertain of how the war against Voldemort was progressing. Soon after she left Hogwarts, she had received a letter that said 'Potion Administered.' Hermione had been elated upon receiving it. It had been unsigned, but it was obvious who it was from. She and Severus both knew of the possibility of having an owl intercepted. As much as Hermione had wanted to write to Severus, it was too risky. If their correspondence had been discovered, Severus's work for the Order of the Phoenix would be exposed and he would be killed. 

Hermione still worried about him a lot. She hadn't heard from him since that note, nor had she written anything to him. She had received a few notes from Ron, and Harry, who always made sure to mention that all of their professors were doing well. It made Hermione smile; she knew that Harry only added that to reassure her about Severus in secret. 

She wasn't sure whether or not Harry had mentioned anything about her relationship with Severus to Ron. Presumably not, since most of Ron's letters consisted of descriptions of how wonderful Harry was or what amazing thing Harry had done. Although Harry and Ron had never explicitly mentioned anything to her, Hermione was perceptive enough to see what was happening with the two boys. It was obvious that Ron fancied Harry as much as Harry fancied him.

At least they were happy… 

However, nobody's future was certain, and they all knew that, had known for the past few years. Voldemort and his followers could strike at any moment. And it was possible that there would be casualties. What if something happened to Harry or Ron? Or Severus... 

For the first time in her life, she was looking forward to the end of her schooling. Then she would be able to go back to Britain, back to those who she loved. 

And not just those at Hogwarts. It had been over a year since she had last seen her parents and she missed them desperately. She had written to them to let them know that she was finishing the remainder of her education in an exchange program in France. It hurt to lie to them, and was further proof of the rift that had been growing between them over the past few years. There was no place for her family in the magical world and none for her in the Muggle world. Because of that, little could be done to prevent them from growing apart.

Luckily, there were only two weeks left of school. Then she would be finished here. Hermione was very upset that she would miss taking her N.E.W.T.s and that she would instead be forced to take the French leaving exam. There was only one test that covered a several subjects, which she knew wouldn't be nearly as enjoyable as the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests. She had spent the past six and a half years preparing for them, but all of that work had gone to waste.

Hermione's eyes shot open when she heard a tap on her window. Her heart began pounding when she saw that it was a Hogwarts school owl. Harry and Ron always used their own owls, so she knew that the envelope that was tied around the owl's leg wasn't from them. Could it be from Severus? However, as she looked at her name on the outside of the envelope, she realized that it wasn't in Severus's handwriting, but a formal and feminine script. She recognized it from the positive comments she always received on her Transfiguration essays. She fumbled with the letter, he hands shaking, and tore it open. McGonagall would only be sending her a note for something serious. 

_Dear Miss Granger,_

_After much discussion with the Headmaster, we would like to present you with the opportunity to take your N.E.W.T. examinations with the other members of your class. If you choose to do so, you will be exempt from your Beauxbatons final exam. Please inform me of your decision at your earliest convenience._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Professor M. McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Hermione gaped at the parchment in front of her for several seconds. This had definitely been unexpected. She had assumed the worst when she realized that the letter was from Professor McGonagall. But this was… well, quite the opposite.

She scribbled a quick reply, then sent it back with the owl. Hermione paced the room for a few minutes, not knowing what to do. She was anxious to get out of here as soon as possible. If only McGonagall would respond already! However, it had been less than ten minutes since she had written the letter, and the owl had to go all the way to Scotland and back. It would be awhile, at least a few days, before she received McGonagall's response, but she wanted to go _now_. Finally she began packing everything in her room. At least she could be prepared. Then she collapsed onto her bed, resolving to spend the remainder of her time at Beauxbatons studying for her N.E.W.T.s. She had already been doing so for fun, even though she was certain that she would never get to take them. But now, she only had a few days! It was necessary to dedicate all of her time to her schoolwork.

Hermione went to bed that night with a smile on her lips. She was finally going home. 

*************

"What did you think of the Potions exam?" Harry asked her, with a triumphant grin on his face after their last test at Hogwarts. 

Hermione frowned. "I did okay on everything… except for that last potion. It was supposed to turn teal, but mine turned turquoise!" 

"Aren't they the same—?"

"No, they're not!" Hermione interrupted him, exasperated. She had been hoping for a perfect score of that particular N.E.W.T., but she still was unsure of her score. She wanted Severus to be impressed with her, and hoped that doing well would be a reflection of his skill as a teacher. Certainly, his methods weren't the greatest for some students. But even in her first few years, before she had begun to think of him romantically, he had secretly been her favorite professor. He was the only one who hadn't showered her with compliments, the only one who challenged her. 

It had been two weeks since she had arrived back at Hogwarts, much to the pleasure of Harry, Ron, and the rest of her friends. She found out that her instincts about Harry and Ron were correct, and was absolutely delighted at that. Another big piece of gossip around the school was the Fleur Delacour had gotten back together with Bill Weasley. None of them had expected her to do it, but it was a relief to both Hermione and Ron. Maybe Fleur actually had a heart after all.

The classes had already been over for the year, and the days since her return had been devoted to studying and testing. She hadn't had Potions classes, nor had she spoken to Severus. He was at every meal, his eyes barely leaving her face. And she was constantly looking back at him, too. Anybody who was watching them would have known that something was going on. But, everyone was so absorbed in their own affairs, with N.E.W.T.s, O.W.L.s, and other final exams to study for. 

Her thoughts were on him nearly all the time. She wanted to see him, to feel his arms around her. But it was forbidden. If only they could try once again to keep it a secret? But they had tried that once, only to be discovered by her Transfiguration professor. Thank goodness it hadn't been anybody else.  

Two days before the Hogwarts Express was set to leave, she still hadn't packed anything, since she didn't have any idea where she could go. She supposed she should speak to Professor McGonagall about that, but Hermione had been putting it off. There was an advanced spell hiding her parents' location from Voldemort, but it was possible for her to be followed from the Hogwarts Express. Therefore, it wouldn't be safe to go to them until the war was over. And according to what she had learned from Harry, Voldemort would strike at any moment. Harry had told her that Voldemort had been getting weaker, although he didn't have any theories as to why. But Hermione knew, and it comforted her. She was beginning to have hope that the Dark might be defeated. On the other hand, she knew that an attack was imminent. And that scared her.

It suddenly occurred to her that the impending battle against the Dark Lord might result in fatalities. Several people had been killed, and anybody could be next. And that included her. And Severus… 

Of course she had thought about that before. But it hadn't really hit her until this moment. _Severus might die. _I_ might die,_ she thought with a shiver.

Quickly slipping into her cloak, Hermione rushed to the dungeons. 

**************

Severus sighed as he bottled up his latest potion for Madam Pomfrey. He hadn't made anything challenging or interesting since the Life-Draining Draught. He brewed the same potions, day in and day out. That would probably never change until the day he died. And neither would anything else. From the moment _she_ had left, his life was back to its normal state before she had walked into it. It had no purpose or meaning to it anymore. Except to defeat the Dark Lord. But ever since he had used the potion, all he could do was wait. Why did it feel like his entire existence had consisted of nothing but waiting? 

The moment he had heard that Hermione would be returning to Hogwarts, he was elated. Unfortunately, Albus and Minerva had both warned him against his relationship with Hermione, forcing him to promise not to seek her out. She was still a student after all. There was, however, a part of him that expected her to come to him at some point. But it had never happened. And he was now beginning to comprehend that it probably wouldn't, since she would be leaving here in a few days. Five months was a long time and he knew that anything could happen. Maybe she had met somebody else. It was also possible that she realized just how wrong her relationship with him was. Whatever the reason, she hadn't spoken to him in the entire two weeks of her return. This caused him to sink even further into despair than he already was.

Severus nearly growled when he heard a knock at his door. Many of the Slytherin students had been visiting him throughout the day to say goodbye to him. This had included a distressed Draco Malfoy, who was having second thoughts about taking the Dark Mark. Severus had been attempting to teach his Slytherins that it _was_ possible to live a life different than the one their parents imagined for them and that there was always a place at Hogwarts for them if they were thrown out of their own homes. He had been forced to remain silent about his own position as a spy, and was glad that at least one of his thick-headed students might be saved. Well, three, actually, since Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle followed everything Draco did. Severus was confident that they would make the same choice as Draco; if only he made the right decision.

The banging on the door became more insistent. Severus had been hoping that the person on the other side would just go away if he ignored the knocks, but that hadn't happened. He stalked over to the door, ready to yell at whoever was disturbing him. He slammed it open. And froze. It was _her. His first impulse was to yell at her for stringing him along. _

However, his anger evaporated when he saw the way she held her robes tightly around her trembling shoulders, the urgent look in her eyes. She was one of the strongest women that he had ever met, yet she seemed so fragile at this moment. "S..Severus," she said, her voice cracking. "I was going to wait until after everything was over, but I can't do it," she cried.

The effect her appearance was having on him was making him feel like he was in a very good dream. The emotions he was experiencing as he pulled her into his arms were absolutely surreal. But, the moment she brought her mouth to his woke him up from his reverie, stirring up the passion that had been absent in his life for the past few months. He no longer felt dead inside.

"Hermione." He murmured her name as he held her, stroking her hair and kissing her face.

After a few minutes, she pulled back and gave him an embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry, Severus." He shook his head. "We shouldn't be doing this. If they find out about us—"

"They won't," he said bluntly.

"Severus—"

"Trust me, Hermione." 

The expression on her face as she stared at him suggested that she believed him. Or that she really wanted to. She looked at him hopefully for a few moments.

"What's been happening with Voldemort?" she finally asked in a shaky voice. "Harry seems to know almost as little as I do."

He took her hand and led her to the sofa in his sitting room. After he conjured two cups of tea, he sat down next to her. 

"We have very little information about when and where they're planning to strike. But we do know several things. First of all, their main target is Albus Dumbledore."

"Dumbledore?" Hermione interrupted. "What about Harry?"

Severus held up his hand, wanting to silence the know-it-all within her. "With Albus out of the way, Voldemort believes that he can have easier access to Harry Potter. And he's right about that."

"But how does he think that he can actually kill Headmaster Dumbledore?" The moment the words left her lips, she gave him a horrified glance. "You're not…?"

"He expects me to do it."

She seemed shocked. But he knew that it made sense. Severus was the only Death Eater who had access to Albus Dumbledore. And it was just like the Dark Lord to send another person to do his dirty work, including killing the only wizard he feared.

"But what happens when you don't?" Hermione asked. He averted his eyes. He didn't want to tell her that Voldemort was beginning to suspect him, that the bouts of Cruciatus had become more frequent, and that he might be cursed with Avada Kedavra the next time he was summoned. "Severus?" she said tentatively after he hadn't responded.

"He'll kill me." He said it brusquely, trying to hide his emotions. But he knew that it was obvious. Severus was afraid. And so was Hermione. She was stroking his hand mindlessly, staring at some fixed point a few feet away. 

"I'm scared, Severus," she said, her voice cracking.

He didn't speak for several minutes. He wanted to reassure Hermione, and to be strong for her sake, but it was impossible. He was at a loss for words. The situation that they were presented with was horrific. People were going to die. And they would end up being two of the main targets.

Hermione had her head buried in his chest, and he kept his arm around her, brushing his fingers up and down her back. He was so content like this. If only they didn't have the Dark Lord's reign to worry about.

"Marry me, Hermione," he suddenly said. She sat up. The moment the words left his lips, he regretted saying it. Of all the ridiculous things he could possibly do or say… His timing was absolutely atrocious. What had even possessed him to say it out of the blue like that? Getting married when there was a war looming was foolhardy. This was definitely one of the worst proposals he could imagine. He briefly wondered if he should use a time-turner to take it back. This type of this was supposed to be saved for a special time; it was supposed to be romantic. Severus Snape had to be the most unromantic man in the entire wizarding world. 

Hermione was looking at him strangely, her face unreadable and pale. Conflicting emotions were present on her face. Well, he certainly didn't blame her. It had to be one of the most unexpected things anybody had ever said to her. Before she could answer, there was a banging at the door.

Both of them jumped. "This had better be important," Severus snarled. He seized the door open and was confronted with a very distraught Draco Malfoy. "What do you want, Malfoy?" he asked in a voice that was usually reserved for Gryffindors. 

"Pr-professor Snape, my father just contacted me." He actually looked frightened. His eyes shifted briefly to Hermione, and then back to Severus. When Severus made no move, Draco continued. "He called you a traitor and said that the Dark Lord wants to kill you. Father told me to be ready for an attack on Hogwarts."

Severus shuddered, a fearful look on his face. It was bad enough that he was now exposed as a spy, although he had been expecting that to happen eventually. He was mentally prepared for that. But not for a strike on Hogwarts… Severus swallowed nervously. "When will it be?"

"Tonight."


	14. Chapter 14

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 14**

With Hermione and Draco behind him, Severus Flooed to the Headmaster's office. Draco had explained that his father had said that it would take place soon, in a matter of minutes. He could see the fear on the faces of the two students, and knew that it matched his own. He had been expecting Draco to make derogatory comments about Hermione, or at least to inquire why she had been in his quarters. He had not; rather, he stayed silent, a pallid appearance to his face. 

"Severus! Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Albus asked with a twinkle in his eyes as the three of them tumbled out of his fireplace, one after the other. However, his cheerful countenance disappeared once Severus began to explain what Draco had told him. It appeared that Lucius had underestimated his son, assuming that he would be more than willing to follow in his father's footsteps. That mistake would cost him dearly.

Albus took a handful of a special type of Floo powder, so that his head would appear in every fireplace in Hogwarts. He threw it into the fire and ordered a mandatory meeting in his office immediately for all prefects and teachers. Then he immediately contacted the Ministry of Magic to send aurors to Hogwarts.

Among the first to arrive were Ron Weasley and Harry Potter, who was clutching his head. 

"Harry!" Hermione said, rushing over to him. 

"Professor Dumbledore, what's happening?" Potter asked. He could barely walk by himself and was only standing with Weasley's help. "My scar is burning…" He squeezed his eyes closed, as if trying to block out the pain. Filius Flitwick, one of the few teachers already present, began murmuring a few incantations whilst he pointed his wand at Harry Potter's scar.

"How long has it been hurting?" Albus asked as he ushered Potter to a chair, then conjured others for the various prefects and professors who were coming up. 

"All day… but it got really bad about ten minutes ago." Albus didn't say anything in response, just began stroking his beard thoughtfully. Within a minute, all of the professors and prefects had arrived and Potter seemed to be in less pain than he had been in before. The entire room was buzzing with conversation as teachers and students alike wondered what they had been called for. They were silenced with a wave of the Headmaster's hand.

"Thank you all for coming as quickly as you did. I will not beat around the bush, nor will I sugarcoat what I have to tell all of you, for time is of the essence right now. It has come to my attention that Voldemort—" A few people flinched at the name, "—is planning an attack for tonight, which will take place at Hogwarts." At that, the room erupted in a flurry of terrified comments. The Headmaster had to raise his voice to quiet them. 

"As you know, Hogwarts is heavily warded and it is close to impossible for intruders to pass by our boundaries. However, nothing is infallible, and I will therefore not take the possibility of an attack lightly.

"The four Heads of House and I have been plotting for this scenario for quite some time. We deemed it necessary to prepare for the unlikely event of an attack. In our plans, we were expecting to be surprised; however, we are fortunate in that we already know that Death Eaters may strike tonight."

He went on to outline the plan that Severus and the others had thought up, which was now somewhat revised because they had prior knowledge of the attack. The sixth and seventh years were to help defend the school if they chose to do so. Otherwise, they would hide out with the first to fifth-year students in the Slytherin dormitories. If the invaders made their way into that portion of the castle, a passageway that extended from the Slytherin common room to Hogsmeade would be activated and they would be able to escape.  

Once Albus finished, he called Harry Potter back as everybody else scattered to their respective common rooms to warn the other students of the attacks and to hurry to get the younger ones to safety. It had been less than ten minutes since Draco had initially told Severus about his father's warning, yet it was possible that Death Eaters might already be permeating the walls of Hogwarts. 

Right as Severus was about to leave the Headmaster's office, a hand grabbed his arm. He found himself facing Hermione. "I need to speak with you for a moment." Her face looked urgent, so he led her into a small room off the side of the office. Not a single other person in the office noticed them going into it; everybody else was anxious to Floo back to the students of their Houses. They all seemed to be in a state of panic. For good reason…

"Severus…" Her eyes focused on his face and his expression softened. "I never gave you my answer earlier. I love you, Severus. When this is all over, I would like to marry you." 

He kissed her forehead. "I love you so much, Hermione. But I might not be alive when this is finished."

"Don't say that!" She put her hand on his cheek. He grasped it in his own hand. "Just think of our future together. It will give you something to hope for." Giving him one last kiss on the lips, she left. He watched her for a few seconds before he left for the dungeons. It occurred to him that throughout his entire time as a spy, he had only gone on because of the need to redeem himself. For the first time in his life, he had a different purpose, finally a reason to live. Hermione.

**************

Hermione caught up with the other Gryffindors in the tower. All of them were so anxious about the possibility of a battle that they hadn't even noticed that she was missing. Well, Harry was also missing, but that was because he was with Dumbledore. For safety reasons, the entire house of Gryffindor was to go together to the main floor, where the sixth and seventh-years would meet in the Great Hall, and the fifth-years and below would head to the Slytherin dungeons. They rushed as fast as possible to beat their attackers

However, before they reached the Great Hall, there were already Death Eaters in the building. Her heart sunk and she felt ready to be sick. How had they gotten past the wards so easily? Hogwarts was her sanctuary, the one place she always felt safe. But 

McGonagall quickly pointed her wand screamed _"Protego!"_ to deflect the yellow light that was coming in their direction from a masked Death Eater. It was amazing how quick her reflexes were. She ordered the fifth year prefects, in addition to several teachers who were to stay with the younger students for protection, to use a back staircase. They obeyed without question.

_"Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione yelled, as several other Gryffindors said similar spells, causing the Death Eater to fall over, unconscious on the ground._

All of them raced to the Great Hall to join the rest of their comrades.

When Hermione arrived at the Great Hall, she was in awe of the sheer number of people there. How come there were so many people on the side of the Dark? The experience was completely surreal.

She continued fighting, ducking in time to avoid getting hit by a curse. Out of the corner of her eye, she was surprised to see how many students were actually willing to fight to protect Hogwarts. Even the Slytherins, led by Draco Malfoy, were fighting as hard as everybody else. She would have thought that Pansy Parkinson, Theodore Nott, and the rest of them would follow their parents and avoid actively participating in the fight against Voldemort. But they were not. Of course, a few hours earlier, she would have never expected Malfoy to side with Dumbledore. He had always called her a mudblood, which had given her the idea that he was—like his father—a true supporter of Voldemort. 

Anybody overlooking the Great Hall would have been amazed at the sight beneath them. The floor was crowded with students, professors, and Death Eaters, tossing spells at each other. A few people had already fallen. Hermione could feel herself desperately hoping that all of her friends were okay. She swallowed back a cry as she thought about Severus, who had mentioned the possibility of being killed. She had thought that he was being overly pessimistic. But it was, in fact, entirely possible. It wasn't as though only Death Eaters would die while those on the side of the Light remained unscathed. 

_"Stupefy!" she said pointing her wand at the Death Eater in front of her. She was happy to see that he fell. However, she didn't see the one behind her._

_"Impedimenta!" his voice said. Hermione turned around, seeing the curse coming at her, unable to stop it._

_"Protego!" a different person yelled, averting the spell, and pulling her nearer to him. Severus. She almost began crying out of happiness. He was still alive._

The Death Eater dodged the spell. "A Mudblood, Severus? Pathetic!" he spat. 

Hermione suddenly realized who it was… Lucius Malfoy. A purple light shot out of Severus's wand, but Malfoy managed to block it. Then a cruel smile formed on his face.

_"Crucio!"  It wasn't until she was hit with it that it actually registered who the curse was directed at. It was so unexpected that she didn't have time to prepare, or even to attempt to stop it from striking her. _

It was more painful than anything she had ever experienced. Her body felt like it was on fire. Now she knew how Harry felt. Hermione knew that she was dying, slowly and torturously, but there was nothing that she could do to stop it. She could feel herself sinking further in.

_"Avada Kedavra!" A green light shot by her and Malfoy fell. As the hold the Cruciatus Curse had on her subsided, she attempted to go to Severus. However, her legs wouldn't support her, and she could instead feel him lifting her, cradling her in his arms. The last thought that she had before falling into blackness was that Severus had just used the Killing Curse._

***************

Harry looked around, feeling a twinge of hope springing up inside of him. It seemed as though all of the Death Eaters had fallen. They had been outnumbered by Hogwarts students and teachers, which he was grateful for. It was nice to know that more people supported good than evil. 

Ron was unconscious on the ground next to him. Harry was worried, but knew that Ron would live, which was the most important thing. He had been pleased to see Neville take down Bellatrix Lestrange. All of the Dumbledore's Army members who were still at Hogwarts seemed to be more or less alright. They had fought alongside the Slytherins, who were on Dumbledore's side, much to the surprise of everybody. It had to be tough for some of them, to be fighting against their parents. Harry had always hated Malfoy, and there was little that could change that; however, he was beginning to have a newfound respect for him.

But, as he reflected on all of this, he couldn't stop the nagging feeling that was growing inside of him. Voldemort was still alive.

_"Avada Kedavra!"  a voice behind him said. He stared at the green light, heading towards him. He couldn't see or hear anything else, only the light. And there was nothing that he could do to stop it. No spells blocked the Killing Curse. He had survived it before, but he had a feeling that he wouldn't be that lucky twice._

Suddenly Harry felt himself being pushed out of the way. Horrified, he watched the light strike Albus Dumbledore. An overwhelming number of heartbreaking emotions overtook him. The most powerful wizard in the world had just sacrificed himself to save him. 

He was done for, as was the entire world as he knew it. Not that he would be alive much longer to see that. If Dumbledore couldn't defeat Voldemort, certainly Harry didn't have a chance. He wanted to give up, to collapse on the ground in the hope that Voldemort would kill him quickly with Avada Kedavra, rather than using one of the more torturous methods. That was the only way out of this.

Suddenly, the words of Sibyll Trelawney ran through his mind. 

_Either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives…_

The prophecy… Harry swallowed and faced the Dark Lord. _That_ had been why Dumbledore had chosen Harry's life over his own. But how would he kill Voldemort without Dumbledore to help him? Harry's chest ached as he attempted to hold back sobs. 

However, he had to be strong, to do what was expected of him. Dumbledore's death would have been in vain if Harry didn't do his best to fulfill the prophecy. He was a Gryffindor and he would fight his hardest. That was the least he could do.

_"Expelliarmus!" Harry's wand shot out of his hand, out of his reach. The Dark Lord grinned malevolently, advancing on Harry. "Potter, you're making this too easy for me." Before he could react, Voldemort yelled, __"Crucio!" It threw him back a few feet, but Voldemort didn't hold him under it for very long. Funny, it hurt less than it had the last time he had been hit with the Cruciatus Curse. _

"This seems familiar… oh yes… I'm reminded of the time I murdered your mudblood mother," Voldemort said in a taunting and malicious tone. "She didn't have her wand either…"

Harry glared back at him in sheer revulsion and hatred. In one swift motion, he pulled a spare wand out of his pocket. Dumbledore had given it to him earlier just in case. _"Petrificus Totalus!" It was the first incantation that had come to mind. Although any second-year student could do it, it was still effective. _For now._ The Dark Lord's body froze and fell to the ground, his reaction time too slow to avoid the spell._

"Harry, you have to kill him," McGonagall told him urgently. "It's the only way…" Harry glanced at her for a few seconds. She seemed distraught, her usually meticulous appearance haggard. He briefly wondered if she knew about the prophecy. It was a possibility, for she was one of the people that Dumbledore trusted most.

Harry stared at Voldemort, who could awaken at any time. He had never used the Killing Curse, but had certainly wondered if he had the capability within him to do it. Almost immediately, his mind was flooded with thoughts of his parents, Cedric, Sirius, Dumbledore, and everybody else who had died at the hands of Voldemort and his followers. And the people who would be killed in the future if Voldemort was still alive. Yes, Harry would be able to do it. _"Avada Kedavra!" _

The green light shot out of his wand, striking Voldemort's body. He hoped that he would never have to use Avada Kedavra again; there was no way he could handle it. 

His hand shook briefly as he summoned his original wand back to him. He stared at the corpse of the Dark Lord. It was finally over.


	15. Chapter 15

Author's Note: Well, here's the last chapter. I have another (quite lengthy, as usual) Author's Note at the end. By the way, there's a Jane Eyre quote in here somewhere. Ten points and a chocolate frog to anybody who can pick it out!

**Escape from the Darkness: Chapter 15**

"Hermione?" 

She tried, unsuccessfully, to turn over and see who the voice was coming from. She was too weak; her entire body felt like it was still asleep. The voice spoke again. "Uncle Severus, she's awake!" it screeched. "Hermione?" Footsteps came towards her.

"Be quiet, you annoying little girl," a different person hissed. Hermione could feel her lips trying to form a smile. She knew that voice. Severus. "Hermione?" he asked breathlessly, taking her hand in his. 

She opened her eyes and found herself staring at the ceiling of the Hospital Wing. Hermione squeezed his hand and finally turned towards him. "Severus?" she asked, her voice barely coming out in a whisper. "Thanks, Selene," she whispered to the worried-looking young girl who was handing her a glass of water.

"I'm going to go tell Harry and Ron that she's awake," the girl said after a firm glance from Severus.

Hermione tried to sit up, wanting to look at Severus's face. She got up about halfway before collapsing back on the pillow. "Don't, it's too soon," he told her, tenderly moving a few strands of hair out of her eye. 

"You're alive, Severus. And Harry and Ron." She still spoke hoarsely. The last thing that she had remembered… well, he had cast Avada Kedavra on Lucius Malfoy. She had so many questions. What had happened to Voldemort? Were all of her friends okay? At least Harry and Ron were, but what about the rest?

"I meant what I said, Severus; I want to marry you," she told him deliriously. 

He kissed her forehead. "We can talk about our wedding later. Right now, my dear, you need to rest," Severus said. 

She would have debated going back to sleep, for she had so many questions, but was in too much of an odd state to do so. 'Our wedding', he had said. His voice held hope for the future. She was somewhat elated by this, despite the pain and fatigue she felt. Before she could say anything more, Hermione slipped back into unconsciousness.

The next time she woke up, Harry was staring back at her, his hand holding hers. "Hermione," he said with concern in his eyes. "We've been taking turns watching you. All of us were so worried! Snape said that Lucius Malfoy used the Cruciatus Curse on you." Hermione nodded. Her head hurt so badly. 

"Was it this painful when it was used on you?" she asked, her voice still scratchy. 

"Malfoy held you under it for quite a while. Snape was worried that you might have permanent brain damage." Hermione gulped at Harry's words, thinking of the state of Neville's parents. Her mind was one of the most important things to her… What if she had lost it? 

Seeing the look on her face, he changed the subject. "We won, all thanks to the two of you. If Snape hadn't given Voldemort the potion you made, he would have never been weak enough for me to kill him." He gave her a forced smile. However, Hermione could see the pained look in his eyes behind his smile and she knew that it was time to ask the question she had been dreading.

She took a deep breath. "Is everybody okay?" Hermione asked, closing her eyes in dread of the response.  

"Hermione…" Harry shook his head and looked downward. He looked like he was ready to cry.

"Who, Harry?" she whispered, feeling herself falling into a panic. He didn't speak. She raised her voice higher. "Tell me!" she practically shrieked.

"Dumbledore," Harry responded. 

Hermione shook her head. Her eyes began filling with tears as she thought of the smiling old man who always had a twinkle in his eyes and a kind word for everyone. She squeezed her eyes shut, falling back into a deep slumber. 

Hermione slept through the night, surprisingly, not having the horrible dreams that she had expected. She assumed that this was connected to a vague memory of waking up and being fed Dreamless Sleep Potion by Madam Pomfrey.

She awoke feeling better than she had the evening before. Hermione slowly sat up, her eyes falling on two figures next to her bed. Her parents. Both of them looked worried and exhausted. 

"Mum? Dad?" she whispered. Hermione quickly went to stand up and go to them. A wave of dizziness hit her.

"Be careful, darling," her mother told her gently. "You shouldn't move from bed just yet."

"Mum, Dad, I missed you so much," Hermione murmured as they brought her close in a hug, and began to cry. It had been far too long since she had last seen them.

"Sweetheart, Madam Pomfrey said that can come home with us tomorrow," her father told her. 

She looked at him, wiping away her tears. "I'd like to stay here."

Her parents seemed surprised. "But Hermione, I thought that you would come back now that the war is over, especially now that you're done with your studies," her mother said, looking upset.

"I will… for a visit." She sighed.

"Mum, Dad, I have something to tell you." Hermione swallowed, wishing that she could have waited until she had her strength back. If only she had just agreed to go, then waited a few days after she had gotten home to say it. But, it was too late now. She had to finish what she had begun. "I'm getting married."

Both of them stared at her in astonishment for a few moments. "Hermione, this is… quite sudden," her mother finally said hesitantly. "You didn't even tell us that you were seeing someone. And you're still so young…"

"Which one is it, Hermione," her dad began, "Harry or Ron?"

Hermione sighed. This was _not going to be easy. How would she tell her parents that she was marrying a man only a few years younger than they were? She decided to spit it out. "It's neither of them. I'm engaged to my Potions professor, Severus Snape." _

_Oh dear_, she thought to herself as her mother's face paled and her father's turned red, _this is certainly not the ideal reaction_. Her mum looked ready to faint, and her dad seemed like he was about to lose control of his anger. Not that she had expected them to act any differently. Especially since her stupid Gryffindor courage had told her just to blurt it out, rather than preparing them for the shock of it. 

Her father was the first to speak. "Your teacher, Hermione?" he spat out. "What kind of school is this where teachers take advantage of their students?"

"He didn't take advantage of me," Hermione cried. "It wasn't like that at all."

"Hermione, this is just so surprising and unexpected," her mother said. She also looked very upset. "If only you had found somebody younger…"

"Mum! You know that's not the way it works." Tears sprang to her eyes. "I love him," she said softly. "It's not something that I can help. And as amazing as it is, he loves me back." 

The look on her father's face softened ever so slightly. However, he still seemed to be struggling to keep from getting angry again. "I'd like to meet him," he said in a strained voice.

Hermione nodded, then called to Madam Pomfrey. "Can you please ask Professor Snape to come up here?"

"Of course. But you really should be sleeping, dear. You've been through a terrible trauma."

"I will soon. Thank you," she said as the mediwitch left to Floo Severus from the next room.   

***********

Severus sighed. His meeting with Hermione's parents was going as he had expected. It had been filled with accusations of corrupting their daughter, followed by attempts on his part to get them to warm up to him (which didn't really work; Severus Snape was _not good at being friendly). He was grateful for one thing: at least they were older than him, by more than ten years. Eventually their anger waned, thanks to the pleadings of their daughter. This was followed by strained conversation and uncomfortable silences._

The current problem was one of the latter. He didn't usually care for meaningless chatter, but the awkwardness was becoming too much for him. For Hermione's sake, he didn't want the Grangers to hate him. 

"Hermione tells me that you are dentists," he finally said. Both of them perked up immediately at the simple statement.

"Yes, yes we are!" her father told him amicably. He and his wife went into an animated discussion about their dental practice. Severus felt a bit of relief at the couple's enthusiasm. Anything was better than being yelled at by the father of his fiancée. The conversation had been favorable… at least it had been until he had mentioned that he had never before been to a dentist.

"You do realize what you're getting yourself into, Severus?" Hermione asked after her parents had left. Her lips twitched in a grin. "Do you even know how to use a toothbrush?" He glared at her. She had seemed so depressed and sickly just a few minutes earlier. And now she was making fun of him?

"Of course I do!" he said resentfully. He didn't want to tell her that he had only heard about them, never having used one himself. Cleansing spells seemed much more convenient. 

"They're going to bleach and straighten your teeth, in addition to fixing whatever other problems they find. Most likely there will be a lot, considering you've never gone to a dentist in all of your thirty-eight years. And it will probably be painful too." He frowned. Was it _really_ necessary for her to act like such an insufferable know-it-all, even when she was bedridden in the Hospital Wing? Didn't she know that he had only agreed to it for her?! And it wasn't like he couldn't handle pain. If he could handle Crucio, he would certainly be able to take a visit to the dentist. He almost verbalized these thoughts but decided not to mention the Cruciatus Curse, which would no doubt resurface horrible memories of the battle a few days earlier. She was actually in a good mood, which was amazing when one considered what she had been through.

"You seem awfully happy about that," he told her with a smirk.

 "No, I'm happy for a different reason." She paused. "Thank you, Severus," she whispered. "I've always worried that my parents would no longer be a part of my life once I completed Hogwarts, but now I think that there's hope. They seem to like you." Severus's sneer softened into a smile. He didn't want to spoil the moment with the obvious question: If they really liked him, why would they subject him to the pain that seemed to come with a visit to the dentist?

"You actually do want to marry me?" he asked. "You didn't just say that because there was a chance that one or both of us could be killed? Or because your mind was clouded by the horrible ordeal you went through?" 

"Of course I want to marry you!" 

He gave her a serious look. "Hermione, you know what type of man I used to be. I was a Death Eater, a supporter of the Dark. Innocent people were killed and I did nothing to stop it; in fact, I probably caused many of their deaths. Do I really deserve to be forgiven, Hermione?" 

"Severus, please stop speaking of yourself in that manner. What necessity is there to dwell on the past, when the present is so much surer—the future so much brighter? So many have been saved because of the sacrifices you made! You have more than compensated for a few bad choices made long ago." 

"Hermione…" He tenderly cradled her cheek in his hand.

"I love you, Severus," she said in a low voice, her eyes closed. 

How was this possible? His life had barely been one step up from hell before, and he had never expected that to change. Somebody cared for him deeply, despite his shortcomings. And it wasn't just anybody; it was Hermione.

"I love you, too, Hermione." With that, he brought her lips to hers, their kiss full of promise and hope for the future.

The End

Author's Note: Thank you to all of you who reviewed (especially the few of you who offered concrit—I literally jump for joy when I get those types of reviews). I never expected to get this many, but am pleasantly surprised by it. I enjoyed writing this very much, and hope that you enjoyed reading it too. Yes, I realize it's not perfect, and that there are many things that I would have done differently (such as finding a good beta) if I wrote this again, but this was, after all, the first work of fiction over two thousand words that I have ever written. 

For those of you who were wondering, I do have several HG/SS plot bunnies in my head at the moment, in addition to a GW/DM story—based on my favorite book, Pride and Prejudice—that would be kind of a companion (and kind of, but not really like a sequel) to this one. If I was really obsessed with doing a series like this, I would also do Bill/Fleur story based on Persuasion (another one of my favorites). However, it's probably not going to happen. Those are all just possibilities, and will most likely just be thrown into the realm of Never-to-be-Completed fics (where I write one chapter, then toss it out because the thought of continuing bores me to tears). Oh, and I also have a parodyish thing that I'm in the middle of right now.

Please leave a review! Once again, thanks for reading!


End file.
